How Long Is Forever?
by Mayet
Summary: She was happy. So why was she standing here, right infront of him with panic in her eyes and grabbing his hand that still fit her's so perfectly, saying one word. Just one word:"Run!" Full Summary and Pairings inside! I don't own DW or Torchwood!
1. Glimpses

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Fandom:** Doctor Who… some Torchwood

**Pairing:** 10/Rose, mentions of 10.5/Rose and 10/River (both of which in the past)

**Rated:** T (might go up in the course of the story- not completely sure about it, anyway)

**Warnings: **unbeta-ed

**Full Summary: **_'Tragedy will bring the Big Bad Wolf back under the Eye of the Storm'_He's heard those words quite often, his own TARDIS repeating them again and again in the back of his mind. But she was happy and safe, they both were- in Pete's world! So, how come, when Jack calls him to Cardiff because of some Rift activity, he finds her standing infront of him with anguish in her brown eyes, grabbing his hand to run again.

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 1: Glimpses**

He had done it.

Not so long ago he had sent Professor River Song to her execution. He had given her that sonic screwdriver he had made especially for the occasion as they shared one last picnic infront of the Singing Towers, and had whispered his name into her ears. He hadn't felt anything by it, contrary to River's suggestions when he first met her. He hadn't wanted to tell her his name, but knew that he had to- in order to save those 4022 people in the Library. In order to kill the woman he loved.

Because he had. Loved her. Albeit as a sister. Everything else was just pretend. Every loving glance, every passionate whisper, every kiss had been a lie. That made quite a long list of lies, because every caress, every declaration of love, every ounce of his hearts belonged to someone else. All this time he had spent with River, he had seen someone else. Imagined someone else. Wished her to be his someone. Wanted her to be a person, she never even met, and he barely ever talked about.

She had deserved better!

River was such a sweet woman, and if the circumstances had been any different, maybe he would've fallen for her. Unfortunately for River, his hearts already belonged to another woman. And unfortunately for him, he still had no choice but to lie about it. At the beginning of their relationship, he had been reluctant to give in to how things were supposed to go, going as far as to distance himself from his companion, being cold and hard. This had led to River- oh, that brilliant woman- asking about who the ghost was that didn't seem to leave him, that just continued haunting him even across time and space. He had smiled a bitter, a sad little smile, but hadn't answered- except for in his thoughts.

_'You want to know who you're up against?' _he remembered to have thought at receiving the question. _'When you first signed up, I told you what I tell every companion sooner or later: That I could save the world, but lose you. Because between you and a planet, I'd chose the planet. Always. But if it was her or a planet, a system even, I don't know what I'd choose, and that terrifies me. What you're up against, River? My Everything…And I can never see her again!'_

Well, that wasn't strictly true. He got glimpses of her life with his Human Self sometimes. Especially when he was close to a rift in the fabric of time and space. His telepathic connection with his twin just seemed to flare whenever that was the case. Or when the Other Him wanted him to know something, wanted to show her that she was happy. Safe. Happy and safe in the other universe, far, far away from him and the trouble that seemed to constantly follow him.

He had known when they first talked about their relationship.

"_I understand that this is difficult for you, and I want you to know that I'll always be here. I'll wait," his clone said in a solemn voice, yet so gentle as if he was taking to a scared child. He had taken her hands in his, too, to reassure her that he wasn't going anywhere. "I'll wait a lifetime if necessary for you to-"_

"_No."_

"_No?" the Other Him asked almost desperate at the sign of rejection._

"_I don't want to repeat past mistakes. We've waited so long, me and him, not saying anything. I don't want that again."_

They had settled into a comfortable relationship shortly afterwards, although they had still some things to adjust to here and there.

A year later, they had married.

_Rose was stunning as she walked down the aisle, her creamy wedding dress hugging her curve elegantly. Her hair, which went passed her shoulders now and wasn't bleached anymore, had been pinned up beautifully, leaving a few soft brownish curls to frame her smiling face. A small bouquet of lilac and white flowers was pressed into her hands nervously as her not-quite-father led her towards her future husband- who had actually adorned himself with a smoking, and could hardly stand still on his feet. He was shifting so much, you got the impression that all he wanted was to run up to his beloved._

_If not for Jackie Tylers death glare._

_Beside him stood that universe's version of Jack as their best man. Behind him, Jake was blushing at being so exposed in his best suit. On the other side Martha and Sarah-Jane could be seen, wearing pretty lilac dresses, each holding a bouquet of their own. Apparently, the pair had gathered up all their friends from their original universe, if they couldn't get the 'real' ones, and probably were quite good friends with those, too._

_The vows were exchanged, as were the rings. Everyone waited with baited breath as the couple came together in a sweet, sweet kiss. Then, the whole church broke out in applause, while 'John Smith' tucked his new wife's head underneath his chin, and hugged her to him fiercely._

The sight made him happy for them, and jealous of them all in one.

The Doctor was also there when they moved into their first flat.

_"Don't get me wrong, your mother is being very nice indeed- I can't believe I just said that… Ouch!" the Other Him yelped when hit on the arm playfully by his new wife. "But I think, it's time for us to stand on our own two feet- well, four feet."_

He'd laughed at that.

The most powerful spike of his telepathic connection to his twin reached him far away from any rift, a strong wave of excitement and happiness washing over and through him. Baffled, the Doctor found out that he was going to be a father once more. Well, the Other Him mostly, of course, but technically the child was sort of his, too. River had been very surprised to find him dancing along the halls of his ship, and he'd continued to be chippery all week, and well into the next few months.

Until the second most powerful flare hit him, this time full of grief and loss. Immediately, the Time Lord realized what must've happened. He had expected it to happen, but had pushed the thought at the back of his mind. But of course, the universe- any universe- would be cruel to him, bestowing his beloved with a miscarriage when she wasn't even into the third month of her pregnancy. Rose had been just too human, had 'given' the child too many human genes to take a- even partially- Time Lord mind. The little body couldn't handle it, and nature had taken it's course.

Afterwards, John and Rose had agreed not to have any children. Instead, they tried to save everyone else by doing their job at Torchwood. And slowly, very slowly they conquered some of their happiness back.

_Having a grave to visit, seemed to help a bit._

_He held his wife tightly as soon as she came up from her crouched position. She had been changing the flowers on the small grave, they had insisted on giving their unborn child. They didn't even have a body to burry, but it was the symbolic meaning that counted to them, anyway. They visited once a month at first, standing infront of the polished tablet with Rose muttering, crying her apologies over and over again as John held her. Now, almost two years later, she didn't cry anymore, but their routine was barely ever broken, unless Torchwood needed them very urgently. Most people at work didn't quite understand the necessity of their pilgrimage to their unborn child's grave, especially since the part-alien kid had not even had a gender, let alone a name yet. But it was an accepted 'obsession' of theirs, and nobody asked any questions, or demanded it stop. Their friends even came to visit with them once a year, expressing their condolences._

_The Doctor looked at the gravestone throuch his twin's eyes._

**Beloved Child**

**The Doctor**

**Who never had the chance to be brilliant**

_And he smiled a rueful smile._

Lately, there hadn't been as much glimpses as there used to be at the beginning, but he was sure she was happy.

Happy and safe.

Happy and safe with his twin.

So why was she standing here, right infront of him with pain, and loss, and heartbreak, and not least of all, panic in her eyes, pregnant, and grabbing his hand that still fit her's so perfectly, saying one word.

Just one word:

"Run!"

End of chapter 1!

**A/N: Being a 10/Rose shipper, I haven't really been happy with the ending the writers of the Doctor Who series invented for season four. So, I imagined my own story, where Rose comes back to the Doctor once more. **

But whom is she running from? What happened to the other Doctor? And can her and her original Doctor overcome those problems to find their paths together?


	2. Help Me!

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Full Summary: **_'Tragedy will bring the Big Bad Wolf back under the Eye of the Storm'_He's heard those words quite often, his own TARDIS repeating them again and again in the back of his mind. But she was happy and safe, they both were- in Pete's world! So, how come, when Jack calls him to Cardiff because of some Rift activity, he finds her standing infront of him with anguish in her brown eyes, grabbing his hand to run again.

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 2: Help Me!**

He couldn't help but stare.

Earlier that night, Captain Jack Harkness, leader of Torchwood Three, had called him in, because Mickey-the-Idiot had noticed strange spikes of rift activity monitoring said wound in the fabric of time and space. Judging by size and fluctuation, they seemed to have been provoked on purpose, and if that was indeed the case, Earth might be in serious trouble. So, the good captain had figured calling in the troops would be a good idea- just to be sure.

The TARDIS had barely even materialised on the exact spot where Torchwood had installed their invisible lift, and the fife agents had already invaded the Time Lord's home with numbers, and equations, and all sorts of theories on what this could mean for the future of the human race.

Only a very decisive "Quiet!" had gotten the Doctor any attention.

"Now, Mickey-the-Idiot-"

"Watch it!"

"Give me those data, will you?… Ah, there's a good lad." The Doctor winked jokingly, although he felt terrible inside. It hadn't been very long since he had sent River away, and the mere thought about Rose had still evoked an ache in his hearts- better not let on to that. Jack had told him multiple times since he found out what had happened to the young woman that, if he wouldn't like this body so much, he would've strangled the Doctor already. "Hm… intresting. Whatever came through, it came through somewhere very close to your base. As if it was aiming for it…"

"But aliens usually run from Torchwood. It's not like they'd start popping up for tea now," Gwen remarked.

"I know," the Doctor answered, running a hand through his already messy brown hair. "This has been done on purpose, though. So, they- whoever they are- must be looking for you. Maybe they want to make first contact, or something, without scaring the locals too much."

The team raised their eyebrows at him.

"Oi! There are nice cultures out there, too. Just because you haven't met any, doesn't mean they aren't there! Look at me, I'm nice- except for when I'm rude. Am I being rude? Rude and not ginger, of course-"

"Doctor, you're rambling again," Martha chuckled at him.

"Oh. Yes. Sorry… Well, we should probably go looking for them," the Doctor gave in. "And no shooting unless for selfdefense. I won't stand for murder. Clear?"

Torchwood Three nodded. They'd come to know the Doctor pretty good. He'd come visit them from time to time in the past years, when there was trouble, or they called him, or just to converse with people who could at least begin to understand his life. He'd come to seek advice from their captain, after he'd send his newest companion, a Professor River Song, home. Advice on how to sent her to her certain death. Whenever he helped them out of trouble, they always seemed to gain something from it- some piece of wisdom, some musing of long decayed philosophers, or some new idea of morality- while he appeared to lose more of himself every time.

"Alright!" the Doctor shouted full of- probably fake- enthusiasm. "In pairs; move out!"

Not much later, the Doctor and Jack were looking down an alley, well, more of a path between two buildings when a someone they knew very well came running around the corner, brownish hair fluttering in the wind. All they could do was stare, as none other than Rose Tyler approached them. For a moment, the Doctor was almost sure that she would run past them, but then she stopped right infront of him, just for a few seconds. Time enough for him to see her whole life, or whatever glimpses he had been allowed in the past three years, pass infront of his disbelieving eyes. When she slipped her trembling hand into his larger one, he noticed her frightened gaze for the first time. The fear was not directed at him, but it still gave him the impression that he was standing before a lost child, so scared and so far from home.

Literally, a universe away!

"Run!", she said, and suddenly they were running, running away from the darkness of the alley, and out into the flooded lights of the bigger streets. Jack was beside them, still unable to say a word- Jack Harkness, speechless, that was a 'sound' to behold, although maybe the word 'flirtless' would suit him better. And then, the Time Lord heard more footsteps coming up behind them, following them, along with the metallic sound of people running with guns and other weapons attached to their bodies.

Even a gunshot fell.

A quick glance told the Doctor that they wouldn't make it to the TARDIS. Jack seemed to think the same thing, 'cause he directed them towards and across the largest street he could find, and to the next police car. The soldiers- or whatever they were- did not follow, prefering to stay in the darkness. Still, as the captain called his team back, telling them to reunite at the police station, Rose tried effectively to shrink behind him and the Doctor, hiding from the men following them.

"Constable," Jack immediately addressed the police officer, who'd been eyeing them curiously ever since they arrived, and gave him his ID.

"Yes, sir?" the man started as he read the identification.

"You will take us to police headquearters immediately, and tell the people in charge to make the place secure."

Jack's stern voice seemed to frighten the hell out of the poor lad, since the man almost jumped to take his orders. When Jack added that he'll want to drive, he was handed the keys without even receiving a weird look, although the Doctor knew, he'd hardly survive this joy ride with the captain as their driver. Instead of saying something, however, he just silently ushered Rose inside the vehicle, before sitting down beside her. Noticing her trembling, he gave her his coat, though it was obvious that it wasn't the temperature which made her shiver. As he arranged the coat around her small frame, he noticed her slightly swollen belly once more. Here state was just barely obvious to his eyes, Jack probably hadn't noticed at all- or maybe he just didn't say anything. It didn't matter, the sight fascinated him. To be showing, she had to be at least past her forth month. Maybe this child stood a chance at surviving? When he reached out to lay a hand upon her growing child, she flinched away, and shot him an apologetic look. The Doctor and Jack exchanged a look over the rear-view mirror, both men instantly understanding what those soldiers came for.

They wanted the baby!

**33333333333333333333333**

"Sir," one of the men said.

"What is it…sergant?" the other man asked, taking a look at the rank insignia on the dark blue BDU's.

"I reckognized one of the targets, sir."

"Mrs. Smith is well known to all of us, I think."

"No, sir. I meant the man in the brown coat, sir."

"Really?" his superior wanted to know. "How come? This is a different universe. Do you know him from our side?"

"We all do, sir. He's the man who opened the rift to send Mrs. Smith through. He's Mr. Smith, sir. Which means…"

But he didn't need to finish that sentence, because the other man was catching up quickly. It had been dark, and he hadn't been able to take a proper look at whoever had 'escorted' Mrs. Smith to the safety of a police car (they couldn't be noticed after all- not by the larger masses, at least). This new development, however, made the whole operation more complicated, but also much more tasty.

"The Doctor."

The man took his red uniform hat, and wrenched it between his hands.

**333333333333333333333333333**

"Are you alright?" Martha yelled across the floor, running towards her two teammates discussing the situation with the Chief. Not far behind her, followed Ianto, Mickey and Gwen the medical doctor's example, and hurried over to them.

"Yeah, we're fine."

"Did you find what came through the rift?" Ianto questioned.

"Yep!" the Doctor said, popping the 'p'. Wether he was happy or sad was hard to tell. It seemed to be a bit of both. "She's here, right now. The others are back there."

"She? The others? What are you talking about?" Mickey asked, confused.

"Rose," Jack answered, his tone grave. "Rose, pregnant and persecuted by a platoon of soldiers.

"What?" This came from the whole team.

Jack and the Doctor exchanged another look, before stepping aside. Behind them, Torchwood Three could finally see the young woman, slumped on a chair, hands on her just barely protuding stomach, caressing it. Although she didn't look at them, they could imagine the fear and desperation in her eyes. The almost crazed helplessness of a mother protecting her unborn child. At further inspection, Gwen noticed dark stains on Rose's jeans, and realized that the other woman had been crying. Without another word, she helped the brunette up, and escorted her into an empty room, while Jack gave orders to shut the building, nobody getting in or out.

"Shouldn't we ask for reinforcements?" Andy argued.

"They could've already taken the place of a number of officers. We can't trust anyone who isn't here already. We can't let anybody inside, is that understood?!"

"Yes, sir," was the last thing they heard before Jack shut the door behind them. By now, Martha was kneeling by Roses chair, and Gwen had enveloped the becoming mother into a gentle embrace. She didn't know this woman, had never met her, but Jack had always spoken so highly of her (when he spoke about his past at all), and she needed someone now. Gwen couldn't, wouldn't look away.

Ianto had gone off to make her a calming tea.

Jack knelt down right infront of his old friend.

"Rose?"

No answer.

"Rosie? What happened?"

Rose opened her mouth as if to talk, but she couldn't. Her hand clenched on her thigh. The Doctor moved over to her, finally, having opted to keep his distance so as not to choke her, but unable to watch her so helpless, so lost, and not hold her hand. So, that's what he did. Grab hold of her hand, and squeeze ever so gently, then stroke it with his thumb.

"It all started about half a year back," Rose croaked at that, looking up at the Doctor. "Everything was fine, and then a man called Harold Saxon became President. He was human, we checked on that, since John knew about… Anyway, he was told about Torchwood, and UNIT, and aliens… and about John. He saw it as a great opportunity. He sent some of his scientists from UNIT to ask, if he would let them make some tests- to improve the quality of life, they said. He turned them down, saying that 'Evolving is something humanity has to do on it's own'. But they returned. Every week they came to our doorstep, he always said 'no', but they wouldn't stop. Until about two months ago."

"What happened then?" Jack inquired. Everyone looked up as the door crieked, but it was only Ianto, who quickly handed Rose the cup. It earned him a grateful smile, the first smile she'd shown anyone since she came here.

"We thought it was all over, that they had finally giver up, and continued to live our life."

"But it wasn't over?" Mickey stated.

"No," she said, turning to him. "They only wanted us to believe so. Instead of coming to us, they now plotted in the dark, but when we figured it out, it was already too late. We had just found out that I was pregnant again- we had decided not to have any children after… anyway, we only noticed 'cause I was beginning to show, and went to celebrate. We didn't want to worry about possibilities that night. Afterwards, we planned to tell my parents and Tony. The house was dark when we reached it, and we thought that they'd just had an early night. We didn't want to wake them, but decided to leave a message to meet us the next day. When we entered… when we… entered… oh my god, everything was…it was so… messy, and… destroyed… and they were… they were…"

She couldn't finish that phrase, and instead broke out into sobs.

"And my brother… Tony… I don't know… What happened to Tony?!… What if they… What if…Oh, god! And they want… my baby… help me, please, help… they want my baby…"

At that point, the Doctor couldn't take it anymore. He raised her to her feet, and wrapped his arms protectively around her body, which was jerked with every sobs. She turned in his embrace, fisting her hands into the lapels of his suit jacket, and burried her head in the crook of his neck. He could feel her tears streaming down her cheeks, over his throat and under his suit, but he didn't care.

"Rose. I will protect you and your child with my life. I promise," he told her silently, softly, but his serious voice contained a threat, a threat that made even Torchwood slightly cower before him. "I won't let anything happen to you both."

"None of us will," Jack assured her.

"Yeah, whoever those guys are, they're in trouble if they think they can mess with one of us," Mickey announced confidently.

"They're UNIT."

**End of chapter 2!**

**A/N: That's the second chapter. Bit clearer now what happened, right? Well, I hope so, at least. But where's John Smith? And what's UNIT doing, hunting Rose?**


	3. The Letter

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter****3: The Letter**

"They're UNIT."

Seemingly endless minutes of silence ensued after that declaration. Torchwood Three exchanged frowning looks, while the Doctor just tightened his hold around his beloved's body. She looked so small, even more so since she was still wearing his oversized coat. He could feel her body heat against the cheek he had set atop her brown crown of har, but her uncontrolled trembling had not subsided. It had lessened somewhat, though.

He was glad he still had that effect on her, glad he could still soothe her fears.

"What?" Ianto finally broke their stupor. "But UNIT is the Doctor's ally. He's their scientific advisor- more or less."

"Not in that universe." It was Mickey who answered. "There is no Doctor in that dimension. Or well, there wasn't, until… John."

"So, in the other dimension, UNIT are the bad guys who want to experiment on the Doctor, yeah?" Martha summed up the situation for everyone, chancing a look at Rose. The brunette was still held tightly to the Doctor's chest. She barely had enough room to nod. Once upon a time, this sight would've filled Martha with a jealous rage, and she could still feel a twinge of envy that the Doctor had never viewed her with such affection, but she was now above such feelings.

She only wished her friends happiness.

"And…John is said Doctor in that universe?" Gwen wondered.

Another nod from the hazel-eyed woman.

"Speaking of him, where is the Doctor's clone, anyway? He should be-"

But Jack never finished that sentence, because Rose wound herself out of the Doctor's grasp, and gave him the patented Tyler-slap she had inherited from her mother. The deepest frown edged onto her face, she watched with cold fury as Captain Jack Harkness brought his hand up to touch his sore cheek, his mouth opened in a silent 'o' of surprise.

"Don't call him that!" Rose snapped at him. "Don't you dare talk about my husband as if he wasn't alive! As if he was less of a person than…"

A new sob interrupted her tirade, and the Doctor pulled her back to him again.

"Still, where is he? What happened to… John?"

Rose pressed her lips together, her eyes dull with defeat, and the entire team knew that something had gone terribly wrong on the other end of the rift. Everyone in the room knew the outcome, although only Rose knew how it had happened. They waited silently for her to regain her composure, so she could tell them. Instead of saying anything, though, she pushed away from a slightly put out Doctor, and fished something out of her pockets. It was an envelop, they realized as she handed it to the Doctor without so much as a glance.

The man himself needed one look to see that it was addressed to him, and had been written by his clo… by John. The Time Lord heaved a sigh, before slowly opening the envelop, and bringing forth the letter inside. He dreaded the content of said letter almost as much as the news of there being any Dalek survivors left in the universe. With shaking hands he unfolded the letter to find his own messy handwriting staring back at him.

**Dear Me,**

(he smiled at that)

**if you read this, it means that I'm dead.**

(said smile left his face as fast as it had gotten there)

**It means that said 'Tragedy' the TARDIS has been on about- and yes, I heard every word through our connection- has taken place or is about to happen. Or maybe I'm decaying like every human does sooner or later.**

**In the end, it doesn't matter, what the reason. Point is, our Rose is losing me. **

**Which led me to follow through with the plan I had made up to bring her back over to you, in case of emergency. I stabilized the rift, and opened it a crack, but just in one point. Just big enough for our beloved to slip through. Like a bubble surrounding her, she has traveled all the way over to the universe you're busy saving, so that you won't have to come back to Earth anytime soon. Still, I trust Captain Jack has called for you, once he noticed this rather unusual Rift activity, and I hope you could make it.**

**I've told her about this plan not long after you left us stranded on the beach, and while she hasn't said so, I'm more than sure that she was relieved at knowing there was still a chance to get back to you- in case 'we' don't work out.**

**I don't know how much time exactly has passed for you, or for Earth, but I'm confidently certain that it has been less than to us. This universe is running ahead of our own, after all, and so I can assume that you will probably fail to realize it. Quite some time has passed on Pete's World, and our love still looks as beautiful as ever. She noticed it, too, even asked me about it, but I would not answer. I can not, after all, be sure of my theory, since I don't have the TARDIS to make the appropriate tests. However, we can both guess what has happened, can't we?**

**Which is why I'm asking you not to leave her.**

**I don't know if you still harbour feelings for our Rose **(he scoffed at the mere implication that he could fall out of love with his angel)**, but even if you don't, even if you are long over her, if you ever loved her at all, don't let her walk away. Take her with you, when this is all over, and travel the stars with her again. And if she says no on the first try, you know what to do. Although, in case you don't, I'll spell it out for you:**

**Ask her again. And it might help to mention that you can travel in time, too!**

**One more thing. In case of persecuters, I programmed a security mechanism into the Rift Manipulator on our end. Five and a half hours after Rose came through, the Rift will suck in everything that came originally from this universe. **

**Yours sincerely,**

**John Smith**

There were two more phrases added in a hurry at the bottom.

**P.S.: By that time, our beloved better be in the TARDIS,'cause I don't know if the child qualifies. If that is not possible, you better hold on tight, or we'll be back to square one.**

The Doctor immediately grabbed Ianto's stopwatch, and set the according time. Then he turned to Rose.

"He could still be alive," he told her, but she just shook her head.

The tears were falling from her cheeks as she answered.

"John made this… drug… that would make him human, completely human. But… it's toxic. If taken, it will turn him human, but at the price of killing him. He promised me, never to use it unless there was not other choice, and when we… when he sent me through… the look in his eyes… the way he said goodbye… his voice was so final!" she sobbed, her face hidden in her hands as Gwen returned to hug her again. "He killed himself, rather than letting them experiment on him, and build some stupid empire!"

The Doctor, not knowing what to do, nodded.

"We need to get back to the TARDIS."

"Why, do you have a plan?" Jack asked.

"No need," the Time Lord retorted, handing his old friend the letter.

"Shit!" the Captain cursed loudly, after reading the whole thing. "How are we supposed to do that? There are over two dozen UNIT soldiers out there, and by now they're probably in the hub- with the TARDIS. 'Cause I doubt that a perception filter is gonna stop them. So what do we do?"

"We defend this station from them, and when the time comes, we hold on tight," Martha said grimly. She'd read the letter over Jack's shoulder.

"And just how do we do that?" Mickey panicked.

"He's right," Ianto agreed. "Those are trained soldiers. The officers here are merely police. They won't stand a chance… We could call Torchwood Two for help."

"Yeah, 'cause they're such good friends with the Doctor!" Gwen snorted. "They're still a by-the-book kind of Torchwood, and by the book, the Doctor is Torchwood's greatest nemesis. I don't think it's a good idea to let them anywhere near the Doctor, or Rose's child."

"We could call UNIT," the Doctor himself suggested.

"But they _are_ UNIT. How could we trust whoever would come?"

"Good point," the Time Lord admitted, the cogwheels in his head already turning to find a suitable solution.

"Do you have voice-identification-software in your hub?" Rose piped up, her voice small, but her eyes concentrated.

"Uhm… no. Not anymore. It was destroyed by a virus an alien sent on a rampage through our systems some time ago. We've been waiting months now for the new one," Jack admitted.

"Then we could use a private cell phone toring this universes UNIT," the brunette suggested. "Even if they're controlling every policeman's mobile, there must be some civilian in here. Someone locked up, until they can transfer him to a proper prison. And one of them must have a cell phone we can use."

Torchwood and the Doctor looked at her for a moment. Then, with a shriek- well, two, first fan enthusiastic one from the Doctor, and then a surprised one from Rose- the Doctor enveloped his former- hopefully soon to-be-again- companion in a bear hug, babbling at 90 miles per hour how utterly brilliant she was. The becoming mother, rightfully surprised at first, got over the shock quite quickly, being used to it from her husband. A crimson blush spread over her face and neck at the praise.

"Martha Jones!"

"Yes, Doctor," said woman responded, his enthusiasm slowly affecting her and everyone else in the room.

"Go find yourself a mobile, and make that call!"

"Aye, aye, sir!"

And off she ran.

"Alright, as for the rest of Torchwood Three, go check if everything's ready. Must be prepared for our weary travellers."

Only Jack remained for a second longer, just long enough to hear the Doctor sigh.

"This is gonna be a long night."

**End of chapter 3!**

**A/N: I know this chapter is a bit shorter, but I wanted to tell what happens next in a chapter of it's own. I hope you enjoyed it. Please review! After all, reviews make us authors feel loved, and loved authors update sooner. So, yes, I'm bribing/blackmailing you! ;)**

**Love you all,**

**Mayet**


	4. Choices

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter****4: Choices**

They were hurrying down the hallways, and up the stairs. Always up, up, up on their flight from the alternative UNIT. In her state, the brunette was tiring rapidly, and the man holding her hand throughout their run for safety concluded that this might have been a problem under any other circumstances. He knew, however, that soon enough there wouldn't be anywhere to run anymore.

"Come on, Rose, just a few more steps."

"Till what, Doctor?" the woman asked cheekily, and he smiled, proud that she could still find thecourage to joke with him.

"Till the roof, of course."

"And then, what?" she asked him aloud.

The man in the brown suit didn't answer, knowing full well that he didn't have to. It was clear to both of them that the roof was the end of the line for them. No escaping from it, no more running. If they couldn't keep the Other Unit as they had dubbed their aggressors away from the roof till John's security mechanism set in, it would be over. They could hardly jump over to another building, after all. Chances were slim, but even if they did indeed fight off the bad guys long enough for the five and a half hours to pass, what if Rose was affected by the Rift sucking everyone back into the other universe, too?

They had nowhere to hold on, on that roof!

"We'll make it, Rose," he told her over his shoulder. "I promised you I would take care of you, and I will."

"You're not doing a very good job, are you?" she snapped back playfully.

If she was going to die, or worse, she might as well enjoy her last moments upon this Earth- literally- and not to mention her last minutes of freedom in her life. The Doctor looked back at her with a pained frown that disappeared as soon as he noticed how her tongue poked out of her mouth for her trademark smile. He smiled back genlty, although even that couldn't cast the look of worry from his face. It wasn't until determination overruled any other feeling that she saw it fade into the background.

He really was a master at 'changing' his face.

"Wasn't it you who told me that there was 'a time and a place', Doctor?" Jack Harkness asked them from where he and his team were running on the sidelines. "Now is hardly the time, and this is definitely not the place for flirting."

"Ah, but Jackie-boy-"

"Don't you 'Jackie-boy' me!" the Captain grumbled.

"That was old me! Old, brooding me. This is new, cheeky me," the Time Lord grinned at his long-time friend.

They took the last few steps of the staircase with a jump, before making a mad dash for the door that would lead them onto the roof. The Doctor, still holding Rose's hand in one of his one, was fishing for his sonic screwdriver with the other. They didn't expect the door to be locked, but they had every intention to lock it behind them, like they had done with every other door they'd come by on their way up. With the sound of their seven pairs of feet drumming on the plastic floor, they could almost pretend not to hear the gunshots falling on the floor below them. Still, it somewhat comforted them, since it meant that some of their colleagues of the police down there were still alive.

However, it also filled Jack with a silent rage. Not at Rose, it wasn't her fault, but…

What was that?

He took a quick look over his shoulder at the end of the hallway, and his eyes widened in panic. Apparently a small group of Other UNIT soldiers had gotten across their fighting comrades, and were directly after them. Jack had noticed them just in time to jump between the controlled shower of bullets they send his friends' way. He could feel every single bullet penetrate his chest, arms and legs, before he collapsed on the floor.

Dead.

"Boss, we've got company," Mickey announced without needing to.

"I know," both the Doctor, and Torchwood Three's second in command, Gwen, grunted.

"It's time for us, I guess. We stop them here. Doctor, take Mrs. Smith to safety," the welsh woman instructed, and continued decisively before the Doctor even had a chance to protest. "Do it! That's an order… And as for everyone else: Make a stand! They won't get Rose or the Doctor. If they try, shoot them."

"Yes, ma'am," Torchwood replied.

The Doctor and Rose looked rather unhappy with the situation.

"Why are you still here?!" Gwen snapped at them. "The door's right there. At thirty paces. Will you bloody move already?!"

Her stern voice forced them into action. Reluctantly, they left their friends behind, knowing that Jack would be fine, but worrying about the rest of them. Quick as they could, the two of them moved over to the metallic door. Opening it with a strong swing, the Doctor and Rose were about to step outside and onto the roof, when someone from the opposite building shot a line into the non-existant sand. A blink later, the Time Lord and his pregnant former companion had retreated back into the hallway. Not a single shot had fallen since they had moved, and all of Torchwood three was still standing- well, except for the 'dead' one. The Other UNIT soldiers had closed in on them, though, stepping over Jack's lifeless body without any care. And there was another man now, tall, but older than the younger foot soldiers. His hair had greyed, his face was wrinkled, but his blue eyes still had a piercing quality to them that made the Doctor wonder what a character he'd been as a young lad.

"There's nowhere to run now, Mrs. Smith. And you, Doctor, and your comrades have fought valiantly, but now it is time to yield to our victory," the man mocked softly. "Tell you what, though, as a recognition of your bravery I'll spare all of your friends' lifes if you turn yourself and Mrs. Smith in. Well, almost all of your friends' lifes, considering… All you have to do, is give up…"

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(Earlier that evening- where we left off in chapter 3)

"This is going to be a long night," he heard the Doctor say.

Not a second later, the door closed behind Captain Jack Harkness. He'd leave his friends to their own devices. They needed some time alone now. Time to sort out where they were in this situation, and then afterwards they'd need even more time to sort through 'them' as a pair- wether that be a romantical pair or just friends was not possible to see yet. It would take a while, especially on Rose's side to get over the eventy that led to their reunion.

And what a reunion it was?! Not quite as Jack would've liked it.

It didn't matter much, though, the Immortal decided, shaking his head. Here they were, in this situation, wether they liked it or not, and all of them would have to deal with it. He quickly set off to make sure everything and everyone was ready. Who knew how much time they had until the invasion began. As the word crossed his mind, the former Time Agent realized that this was indeed what it was: an invasion. There was no doubt in his mind that the alternative UNIT would get inside the building.

The only question was when.

_'If we're lucky we can hold out until our guys come in,'_ he thought._ 'But then again, when has the Doctor, or Torchwood ever been lucky?!'_

He contemplated this fduring his whole inspection of the state of the police station, which almost took him an hour. Only the first shower of almost friendly fire brought him out of his musings. A loud crash followed, and Jack could've sworn in came from something heavy hitting on the door to get entry. How did they organize all this so fast? Oh, right. They were military. With a sarcastic "Great!" on his lips, he made a run for the front line- door- were a bunch of policemen were trying hard to hold against the brutal force applied by the soldiers on the other side.

"Is there any way to make the door more stable?" Jack asked immediately upon arriving, while pressing himself against the door with all his might.

"Not really. We could try the hallway benches, but I don't know how much good that'll do us," Mickey replied, pushing himself.

"What about UNIT?"

"They're right outside. Streets are deserted. I think they must've blocked them off, redirecting the traffic."

"So they're not attacking with their full force, now that's a relief," Jack said, as they stumbled backwards after an especially violent hit. "But that wasn't what I meant. I meant our UNIT. What did they say?"

"Dunno. Ask Martha."

"Where is she?"

"She and Gwen were taking the civilians down to the cells, out of the way of straying bullets, last I saw 'em," Mickey told him.

"Nope, done with that," Ianto shouted over the several crashing sound as he came around the corner. "They're up on the second floor with some policemen, attacking our friends out there from above."

"Good, that's were we're going, then, Ianto," Jack announced inapproprietly cheerfully, before grabbing the man by his elbow to drag him off. "You stay here Mickey. If they come through, get the Doctor and Rose out of here, and call me."

"Won't take long, the way I'm seeing this," the shorter man replied, muttering, but Jack and Ianto were already chasing up the stairs, from where they could hear glass shattering on the floor.

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(Bit earlier again- when we left the Doctor and Rose)

"This is gonna be a long night," the Doctor sighed. "But we'll make it through it."

There was no response from his beloved, and so they sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity until the 'Valiant Child' spoke up again, sounding rather scared.

"I'm sorry," Rose whispered.

"Sorry? What for?"

She didn't answer at first, just stepped out of his embrace, and turned away. The Doctor was about to make a wild guess that she was sorry for putting them into this mess, and prepared a long rant about how none of this could be her fault. Then he heard her sniffle, and noticed how her hands strayed down to her belly. Suddenly, he realized that this had to be about something else.

It had to do with the baby.

"Rose?" he prompted. "You know you can tell me anything."

"I'm sorry about the child."

This left the Doctor confused. How could she be sorry for that little creature that was growing inside her? That little miracle, she and his twin made. That wondeful little child, conceived in a love which was written across the stars.

"The child I lost," Rose clarified for him, obviously knowing where his thoughts had headed.

"The child you… That wasn't your fault, Rose," he answered her seriously.

"But it was," the brunette insisted, even as she noticed the frown on the Doctor's face. "If I hadn't been so… human… I've changed, Doctor. In what way, I don't know, but… if I had just waited a few years longer, maybe… my child would not be burried now without a name…and you wouldn't have hurt so much."

That took the Doctor by surprise.

"I know about your connection with John. He told me…that you could sometimes see and feel with him, and I know how pained with grief he was when I…But it worked the other way, too. He could feel how happy you were when you heard of the pregnancy, and how utterly destroyed you felt when-"

"Rose," he cut in, taking her hands. "None of that is your fault. All you did, all you could be ever found guilty of, is reaching out for a tiny bit of heaven on earth, and there are no laws against it- well, I say no laws, but some cultures actually believe it a sin to be happy, and… Am I babbling again?" heasked as if he wasn't sure.

Rose nodded, giggling ever so slightly.

"Rose, I promise that I'll take care of you, you hear me. I won't leave you to deal with this alone. I won't leave you alone, period."

"Doctor, I don't know if I-"

That was when Mickey-the-idiot burst through the door. They had been running ever since.

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(Back at present time)

"So, what do you say to my offer," the man asked. "You can either come with us quietly, or you can sacrifice your so-called friends, and then we can take both of you by force."

The Doctor took a split-second to assess the situation.

"I think, I'll…"

**End of chapter 4!**

**A/N: I'll leave you to guess what the Doctor thinks, for now. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and can't wait for the next! ;) I'm cheeky, I know!**


	5. Took You Long Enough

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter ****5: Took You Long Enough**

"So, what do you say to my offer," the man asked. "You can either come with us quietly, or you can sacrifice your so-called friends, and then we can take both of you by force."

The Doctor took a split-second to assess the situation.

"I think, I'll…"

Everyone's eyes were on him. Even Torchwood Three couldn't help but watch that typical smug smile of his spread across his face, guns formerly held up slowly being lowered. This smile, this smirk meant that he was planning something. Better yet, it meant that the plan was already in motion, and everything was going to be just fine. None of the humans in the hallway knew how anything was going to be fine at that moment, but six of them didn't care to even ponder this.

If the Doctor was smiling, it just…was.

Rose gave a relieved sigh at seeing the Time Lord with his usual happy-go-lucky attitude, but still followed his 'invitation' of standing closer to him, pressing up against his side, when he tugged on her sleeve. His arm went around her shoulder as she reached her destination in a tight grip, and not the blink of an eye later were they falling through the floor. A bunch of indignant shrieks escaped the small human group. Not one of them landed on their own to feet, except for the Doctor, and due to his hold on her, Rose Tyler.

"Harkness Express Lift, thank you for falling with us," came the cheeky exclamation from the sidelines as he put the floor back in his place.

"Took you long enough, Captain," the Doctor muttered.

"Yeah, well, first I had to sneak away without them noticing me, and then I had to find the right setting on my sonic blaster. Haven't used this thing in ages."

"Why isn't it at the hub?" Gwen interrupted their little banter.

"I always carry it around with me when the Doctor comes to visit. You never know with him. After all, he's a man who looked at a screwdriver and thought 'oh, this could be a bit more sonic'. Madness, I tell you. Madness incarnated, that's him. And everywhere he goes, he takes it with him. Follows after him, like a good puppy dog," Jack replied with no little ounce of good humor. "Haven't any of you noticed my body being gone? So very unattentive, Torchwood."

"I noticed," the Doctor retorted, offended.

" 'Scuse me, could we focus here," Martha snapped them back to attention.

"She's right. It might have surprised them, but they will be here any second now," Mickey agreed.

"Then we need to run."

"Run? Run where, Jack?"

"Yeah, we can't go up. They're even controlling the roof," Rose admitted.

"That's why we'll go down."

"And run right into their arms. Really, Captain!" the Doctor growled while pacing around to think.

"Guys…"

"We don't have much of a choice, do we? We need to fight our way out," Jack argued.

"Guys…"

"There's even more of them down there, than there are up here, in case you've forgotten."

"Guys."

"But we'd have mopre options down there. Up there, we're trapped, and here even more so, 'cause we're in the middle of both groups."

"Guys!" Rose practically shouted at them. They finally looked at her. She was cluthing her side, her face an expression of barely controlled pain. Both the Doctor and Jack, and a moment later the rest of Torchwood, instantly looked down at where her hand was pressed against the side of her stomach. It didn't take a genius to tell what the red luquid was that was spilling out from between her fingers. "I didn't noticed it at first."

Those were her last words before collapsing. The others rushed to her side, panic flashing clearly across their faces. The Doctor lifted her up, and without needing to say a word they rushed towards the stairs to move to the ground floor. They needed to take her to a hospital, or the TARDIS. Mutual feelings of anger at the alternative UNIT raging in their insides, they made their way downstairs as quickly as possible while still being careful.

"Do you hear that?" Ianto suddenly asked.

"What? I don't hear anything," Mickey told him.

"Exactly," the coffee-boy answered.

"The fight is over," Gwen stated.

"Who's won?"

"You really need to ask, Mickey-boy," the Doctor replied bitterly. "A bunch of young police officers against specially trained soldiers: do the maths."

"What do we do now?" Martha asked them.

"Well, we need to get Rose to a hospital, which is in there interest, too…"

"Don't even think it," the Doctor warned.

"I'm trying to think of what would help Rose and her baby the most," the 'american' snapped.

"And handing her over to people who are just dying to experiment on her and her baby is the best you can come up with?!" The Time Lord's voice was both sarcastic, and angry.

Dangerously so.

"She might die, if we don't do this, Doc. Do you want that?" Jack replied. They'd stopped a few feet above the end of the staircase.

"She might be disected alive, if we do it, Jack. Do you want that to happen to her?"

"It won't. We'll think of something."

"Yeah, 'cause they're going to just let you be on your merry way, after you handed us over. Please, don't tell me you believed that nonsense!" the Doctor practically laughed.

"Hem, hem," someone at the end of the stairs, interrupted them.

It was an UNIT Captain.

33333333333333333333333333

(Just before Torchwood, the Doctor, and Rose fell through the floor)

The Doctor was considering his offer, obviously. There was no other chance, after all. Instinctively, he pulled his wife- or his clone's wife, same difference, really- closer to himself, until she was secured against his side. There was something about him, though, and about the people with him. Something was off. None of them seemed really scared anymore. Mrs. Smith even breathed a sigh of relief, as if she was content with the outcome of her scpectacular flight through the realities.

One look at the Doctor's face told him, what was wrong. That man was smiling- he had a plan.

Not a moment later the floor underneath them disappeared, and the whole lot of them fell down to the next floor. Shrieks and other screams of fright, and some pretty indecent vocabulary from the dark-skinned male could be heard on their way down. He took a tentative step forwards to see, what he knew already. Where they had landed. Unfortunately, the floor reappeared in exactly that second, so that he ended up looking at the spot, where the Doctor's feet had been.

Baffled, both him and his team did nothing for the next few minutes.

It wasn't like they could escape after all. Quite the contrary, they had just trapped themselves in between a rock and a hard place. He had been informed over his com that the police had been fought down with only minor losses- on their side, anyway. A grin spread slowly over his elderly face at the thought of how Mr. Saxon would reward him when he brought back not only Mrs. Smith and her bastard child, but also the original Doctor- the full-fledged Time Lord!

It would more than make up for the loss of that filthy half-breed!

"Come on," he boomed at his men. "We've got an alien to catch!"

Immediately, they moved out. With quiet efficency, the alternative UNIT made their way down the stairs. They were in no rush, seeing as the Doctor, Mrs. Smith, and their cohorts couldn't possibly escape. Still, no need to get reckless. There may be only seven of them (although were the body of the eighth was, he had no idea) , but five of them had guns, and there was one unknown player in this game with advanced technology- or maybe it was just a trick of the Doctor.

In any case, better safe than sorry.

When they reached the staircase that led to the ground floor, they saw the Doctor and his companions at the base of it, surrounded by his men, although not yet handcuffed. Well, that just wouldn't do. He would have to have a word with his captain, he thought as he and his men jogged down towards them. He couldn't see Mrs. Smith anywhere, but she had probably been taken to some doctor already to make sure nothing happened to the child. It might be a part-alien bastard, but it was still worth millions…

Wait a moment? Captain?

There was no captain on his team…

"Ah, there you are. How nice of you to join us, Major- if the insignia is anything to go by," the Captain said in an amicable tone as he turned from his interrogation- no, not interrogation- from his conversation with the Doctor. "I'm afraid, sir, you and your men are under arrest for crimes against the crown. Not to mention physical assault, tried murder, and several other things I'm sure. To bad we won't get to put you on trial for any of it. The Doctor just told me that you'll be leaving us in…" He looked at his watch "… about two hours already. Oh well, we'll make it worth your while. Sergant, take them away."

"Yes, sir," said soldier replied.

"Oh, Major," the Doctor suddenly called for his attention. "About before… I think I'll have to decline."

After the Other UNIT had been dragged off, a very nervous Doctor spoke up once more.

"I really need to go, Captain. Need to see if Rose is… If she…"

The Captain understood immediately.

"My men took her and Doctor Jones to hospital in one of our helicopters. If you'd like, we could get you and Torchwood there this instant."

"That would be much appreciated," Jack replied, seeing as the Doctor was already halfway out the building.

**End of chapter 5!**

**A/N: Didn't see this coming, aye? Or at least, I hope you didn't. Chapter would've been boring otherwise.**

**To find out what happened to Rose, plase leave a review after the 'piep', and I'm gonna update for you as soon as possible. Thank you. -Piep-**


	6. In The Hospital

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Warnings: **Not-quite-but-almost-character death. Not for the lighthearted, not sure with the rating at this point.

**Chapter****6: In The Hospital**

The helicopter hadn't even landed properly when the Doctor, closely followed by one Captain Jack Harkness, jumped out onto the street, and made a dash for the hospital doors. Giving them a good shove, he swung them apart, his frantic gaze wandering around the entrance hall wildly as if he was expecting there to be a big, illuminated sign: 'To Rose, this way'. Jack, being the more practical one (and more familiar with Earth customs), had already made his way to the reception desk, and asked his way around.

Without even flirting- that was a change!

The rest of Torchwood Three had waited for the machine to stand on solid ground, before quickly following in their leader's steps. Arriving at the reception, they noticed how Jack and the Doctor were already hurrying on, and hastened to come after them, lest they'd lose them. The ride in the lift to intensive care was hell, every member of Torchwood agreed on that, since the Doctor couldn't stop rambling away his worries under his breath. Running a hand through his already more than messy hair every few seconds, and 'jumping' from one feet to another at the same speed, he was driving them crazy.

Jack heaved a sigh.

_'This really is gonna be a long night,'_ he thought, recalling the same Doctor's words.

Although, the man had hardly anticipated this.

With a loud 'pling', the lift opened, making them all jump with the almost-heartattack the sound gave them. So immersed they'd been in their own thoughts. Each of them was thinking about the night that lay behind them- well, not quite behind them, yet- and dreaded what it may hold for them, still. Hoping that their protegé would make it, or the whole fight would've been practically futile.

And then, of course, there was the baby.

The bullet probably hadn't hit the child directly, but the humans didn't dare hope that the little person inside Rose's body might survive the night. The mood was gloomy, to put it mildly, when Torchwood sat down infront of the operational room. The Doctor seemed to prefer standing, or rather: pacing. He was acting like a caged animal that had seen nothing but the bars of it's prison for so long, it had gone mad.

And still he rambled on.

"Doctor, sit down. All we can do, is wait, and hope. Martha is doing her best, I'm sure," Jack tried to calm his friend as he slid his arm around Gwen's shrunken form on the seat beside his. "Going crazy with worry won't help anyone."

"But… I don't… It's Rose, Jack… and she's hurt, and…what if… it's Rose," the Last of the Time Lords practically whined.

"I know, Doc, I know," the Captain replied silently. Sadly.

"How can I just sit here, and do nothing. I'd go crazy- well, crazier than I already am," he told his long-time friend, barely a sign of a smile cracking up his expression.

"She means a lot to me, too."

"And me," Mickey added. "She was my girlfriend once."

"I don't need to be reminded of that," the Doctor grumbled, a small spark of jealousy appearing in his gut. Just like when he thought about that kiss, Rose had shared with his twin on Bad Wolf Bay. It might have been his fault, and he might have driver her into John's arms, but that didn't mean that he liked it. Of course, she was happy, and that was all that mattered, but he couldn't help but feel slightly betrayed.

Though he had no right to feel it at all. He knew that.

And it made it worse!

"I'll go get some coffee," Ianto announced into the silence. "Do you want some, Doctor?"

"Oh no, no chance," Jack answered for him. "There is absolutely no way I'll allow you to take coffee or sugar anywhere near the Doctor. If you think he's bad now, you've never seen him on a sugar high… Oh no, no, no. No coffee for the Doctor!"

"I'll see if I can get some tea then, sir," Ianto clipped amusedly.

"I'll come with you. You can't carry all that, alone, unless you've got a tray hidden somewhere in your pockets," Mickey chuckled.

They were around the corner in a flash, while the Doctor still checked his coat for a tray.

"Sit down, Doc," Jack compelled him to do so with a hand on the other man's shoulder, before sitting back down beside Gwen.

And so, they waited.

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(A few hours later)

Looking utterly exhausted, Martha trotted through the doors of the operational room, carelessly getting rid of her gloves. She marched right past her team and the Doctor, only to slump on the next free seat aviable. She'd been in there almost three hours( enough for the Other UNIT to be gone) in the middle of the night, short off a coffee, after having been away for a good twenty hours. Not the best condition to lead an operation, but as stated before it was the dead of the night, and there weren't many doctors around. When asked to help, she hadn't been able to refuse. Now, she was just tired, and most likely half asleep on the hospital seat.

The Doctor was with her in a breath.

"She'll make it. Just needs lots of rest, and care."

The Time Lord nodded. That was good.

"What about the baby?" he asked, his voice but a whisper.

When Martha hesitated to answer, he gulped, fearing that he knew already. The young woman pressed her lips together in a thin line, and looked so totally apologetic that even the devil couldn't have been angry at her. And the Doctor wasn't the devil, he wasn't angry. And he wasn't disappointed- well, not in her anyway. Still, he felt the rising need to hit something. Anything. A cry of frustration and loss left his throat, and it sounded so anguished that Torchwood flinched.

"It was a boy," Martha said, before she could think about it, and wanted to hit herself right afterwards.

A moment later, they saw a nurse passing by, carrying a bag. Guessing right, what the content was, the Doctor practically ripped it from the woman's hands in his near crazed state. All attempts at calming him down, at telling him that 'he' was dead, didn't appease the grieving Time Lord, who held the little bag with careful attention that just made the Torchwood Team want to cry at the unfairness of the situation.

Especially at the Doctor's next words.

"I'm not letting you flush my son down the toilet!" he shrieked, offended.

Everyone was a bit taken aback by that. Sure, John Smith being a clone- no offence- of the Doctor's, they all realized that this baby was genetically his child, too. But he'd barely even known about it, and yet his instincts were already so very focused on the tiny little creature that had fallen prey to the cruelty of fate so very early on in it's existance. He was behaving like he'd been there from the beginning, like a real father, and only Jack knew that in a sense, the Doctor had been there at the start. Only to Jack, the Doctor had told the story of that telepathic connection between himself and his twin.

"What then, Doctor?" Jack asked softly, first and only one to really understand, what was going on. "What do you want to happen?"

The Doctor's eyes focused their sad, sad gaze on him.

"Burry him, I think… if Rose is alright with that."

"Okay," Jack conceided. "Ianto, you'll call the graveyard."

"First thing in the morning," the man agreed.

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(One week later; infront of the invisible lift)

"Do you want to come with me?" he asked, standing infront of his blue Police Box a week later.

_(Flashback)_

_Opening her eyes for a split-second, she was blinded. A groan of pain escaped her mouth, and Rose fled back into the comfortable darkness behind her eyelids. A squeeze on her hand and a chuckle made her rethink that decision. Slowly opening one eye a crack, then the other, she let everything slide into focus, until she could look at the world without pain. She was in a hospital, that much was clear by the sterile look of the walls, and the uncomfortable-ness of the bed._

_She looked to her left to see who was holding her hand._

_John…_

"What… happened?" _she asked her husband, her voice hoarse._

_Why, she did not know._

"You were shot," _he answered her gently. Oh, how she loved that voice._ "But you're alright now. Martha fixed you."

"Good," _she smiled._ "What about the baby?"

_There was no answer._

"You know, I had a strange dream," _she admitted, getting some confidence in talking back._ "I dreamt I was back in our original universe. And UNIT was after me, and… you were… and Jack was there, and Torchwood… and the Doctor… weird, huh?… Why are you looking at me like that, John?"

"I'm not John."

_She frowned._

"And it wasn't a dream."

"John, this isn't funny."

"I told you, I'm not him," _he repeated sadly._ _Oh, how he wished he was!_ "I'm the Doctor, Rose. You're back, and it was all real."

_Shocked silence. Then…_

"My baby…"

"The doctors couldn't save him. I'm sorry."

"Him?" _she questioned._

_The Doctor nodded, repeating over and over, how sorry he was._

_(End of Flashback)_

She couldn't help but think about that conversation she had with him in that hospital, now that he'd asked the question she had dreaded so much. The thought that he still considered her worthy of travelling the universe with him, delighted her. But could she really just go on, gallivanting off all across the galaxies as if nothing happened? As if she hadn't just lost her family? As if those ten years with her John hadn't existed?

As if she hadn't become a widow so shortly?

"I can't," she said simply, not daring to look into his eyes.

She could practically grasp the hurt that came off of him in waves, just as she could feel Jack's steely gaze on her back.

"Okay," the Doctor clipped.

"I'd like to, but…"

"It's alright," he said, and vanished hastily into the TARDIS, it's whizzing sound filling the evening.

Rose just stood there. Mickey had already turned to leave, Ianto was shocked. Martha didn't know wether to laugh at the irony- which seemed inappropriate- or scream at the brunette. Gwen just wanted to give Rose a hug, but refrained from moving. And Jack was about to launch into an unhealthy tirade of curses he'd like throwing at a certain Time Lord and his human beloved for being so stupid- again! The only thing stopping him was the renewed sound of the TARDIS materializing into the exact same spot it had stood mere seconds ago.

How much time had passed for the Doctor? How many hours had he beaten himself up about leaving? Or was it days? Months? Surely not years, was it? And how exactly had he, for once, managed to land at the right place, at the right time? All these questions were rushing through Jack's head when… Well, let's just say they could hear the Doctor before they saw him.

"No, it's bloody not alright!" he huffed. "I lost you once, on Bad Wolf Bay. It was the worst day of my life. Just as bad as losing my people, worse even. Because then I had you, at least. After losing you, I had nothing. Then you found your way back, and saved me once more, and I thanked you by doing what I had promised you, I would never do to you. I left you. I wanted you to live a normal life, and be happy with John. I didn't know about… But I did it, I left you, and it killed me. I tried to move on, but ever since then, I've been a shell. I pretended to love someone to save thousands, but everytime I looked at her, all I could see was you. It was my own fault you weren't there, and yet you haunted my every step."

Rose seemed rather startled by that confession.

"I lost you, I left you, but I can't… I can never let go of you again. I can't walk away anymore, so either you come aboard, or I'll have to follow you around like a kicked puppy looking for a home - and yes, I know that's blackmail. But I can't help it. I need you with me. Even if all you want me to be is your friend. I can be that. Your friend. Or Not-a-lover-more-than-a-friend. How about that? I can be that, too! Just, please, say you'll come travelling with me again?!… I can be anything! But only when you're with me," he finished in a more quiet voice.

**End of chapter 6!**

**A/N: Well, what do you want Rose to say to that? What should she do? **

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it once more. Please leave a review.  
Mayet**


	7. Awake and Dreaming I

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter ****7: Awake and Dreaming I**

"I lost you, I left you, but I can't… I can never let go of you again. I can't walk away anymore, so either you come aboard, or I'll have to follow you around like a kicked puppy in the future- and yes, I know that blackmail. But I can't help it. I need you with me. Even if all you want me to be is your friend. I can be that. Your friend. Or Not-a-lover-more-than-a-friend. How about that? I can be that, too! Just, please, say you'll come travelling with me again?!"

Taken aback, Rose kept silent for a long time. She noticed the decisive look Jack was giving her. Telling her exactly what he thought: 'Don't you dare ruin your own life- and his- by turning him down! You've been dancing around this unamed space for years. Enough is enough.' But the young woman wasn't sure, if she could do it. Could she really look at the Doctor without seeing her husband? They were the same man, and yet they were not. How could she stay, and not despair at the unfairness of the whole thing?

And yet, how could she not say 'yes'. She had turned him down the very first time, too, but when he'd come back for her, she'd been unable not to grasp the opportunity of seeing it all out there. And now it seemed that she could hold her promise, give him 'forever', if the last ten years were to trust. John would want that for her, wouldn't he? He would want her to live a fantastic life, and he knew that she couldn't ever do that without the Doctor- human or Time Lord, that he is.

Two complete opposites to chose from.

_'This must be a joke, surely?'_ she thought bitterly. _'The universe's way of humor sucks… Someone up there is definitely having a laugh at us.'_

"You know," Jack interrupted her musings. "I could come with. Just for a while, just until you're comfortable on your own."

The Doctor looked at him, baffled, but didn't protest. Hope gleamed in his eyes.

Torchwood wasn't quite as happy.

"You want to leave us, again?" Gwen practically growled at him, and Jack visibly flinched at her tone.

"The Doctor could take me back right to this moment when the Time comes. It'll be as if I wasn't gone at all. And as we just saw, he is after all capable of a punctual landing," Jack hurried to appease her. "And Rose needs me."

That did the trick, it seemed, as the black-haired woman calmed.

But now the Doctor wasn't too happy with him.

"Are you insulting my driving skills?"

"What driving skills?" Jack retorted, more than happy with a little banter.

The Doctor glared at him in mock hurt. Torchwood Three just shook their heads. Over the years they'd become accostumed to this. The two of them would argue whenever they set foot in the same room. It was a given. Sometimes Ianto made coffee and popcorn, and they sat down on the couch in the hub to watch the show. Therefore, the soft giggle floating in the air suddenly, was than a bit of a surprise. Everyone turned to see the first smile on Rose Tyler's lips since she'd awakened in a hospital bed.

"Oh, I missed this," she admitted with a soft blush across her cheeks.

"Does that mean 'yes'?" the Doctor asked, trying not to sound too hopeful.

He needn't have worried, he realized, as another soft smile took it's place upon her expression.

"Well, yeah, I'd like to come," she spoke into the night. "But, Jack, I think… the Doctor and I need to sort this out on our own, so… if you don't mind…"

"Course I don't," the Immortal answered with a big- and, Jack being Jack, suggestive- grin spreading from one ear to the other. "Have _fun_."

Somehow, the Doctor was sure, the way he pronounced that last word, would've made him flush bright red, had he not been a Time Lord. 'Cause Time Lords did not blush, nu-uh, not ever. Instead, he glared at the future Face of Boe as he waited for Rose to hug everyone goodbye, and promise to call every week. Last in the line was Captain Jack himself, who practically crushed the brunette against him, throwing a threatening look over the woman's shoulder to make sure the Doctor would take good care of her.

"See you soon, Rosie."

"Hope so," she whispered back.

With a last wave, she stepped inside the TARDIS (the Doctor had stepped aside to let her enter first) who greeted her with dimmed lights and an all-powerful hum. Rose frowned curiously as she noticed how she felt the sound like a caress over her face, but brushed that thought aside. Finding the interior of the Blue Box to be exactly as she remembered (the TARDIS had redecorated herself a bit, the Doctor noticed), the young woman made her way over to the central column, petting her hand against it softly.

"Good to see you, too, old girl," Rose murmured.

"She missed you," the Doctor told her. "And so did I."

She bit her lip.

"We missed you both, too."

An awkward silence passed between them.

"Your room is still there. Do you want to go?" the Doctor asked gently.

"Sure," she answered, relieved at a chance to talk about something that wouldn't leave them taciturn. "Although, can I ask the TARDIS for help redecorating it a bit. My tastes have changed a bit, since… I was nineteen."

He smiled, relishing in the meories.

"I don't see why not. I'm sure the old girl would love to be of assistance."

This was accompanied by another mental caress from the space-ship, this time a reassuring one. She'd have to ask the Doctor about that. Just as she had to ask him to do some tests, so she could find out for what reason she seemed to have remained the same throughout the whole ten years on the parallel world. For now, she'd be happy to rearrange her living quarters on board this wonderful ship. The Doctor walked her to her room. It wasn't a very long walk, shorter than she remembered infact, since the TARDIS had shifted it just behind the console room. When he fished in his pockets to reveal a new version of his patented sonic screwdriver, he gave her an apologetic smile at her curiosity, and unsealed the door with a specially installed setting on his little machine.

She was about to go inside, when he stopped her again.

"What?"

"Close your eyes, Rose. Just imagine it. How you want it to be…"

She did.

"On the count of three. One…Two…Three!" he chirped, and opened the door as she opened her eyes. "Wow! I must say… this is… brilliant."

His grin lit the room. A decidedly not pink room. It was now all kept in lilac and lavender, a combination she'd first used when arranging herself during her first stay in the parallel universe. She'd found out there that she liked more subtle colours than hot pink. It had reminded her too much of her home on the TARDIS, and now she just loved it. There was a dull pain in her heart, remembering her and John's bedroom looking not so different, but having something of their's always with her, helped her a bit, too.

"You must be tired," the Doctor broke her out of her reverie.

"A bit, yeah. The last week was rather exhausting. But I'd like to do one more thing, before going to bed."

"Yeah?"

"Can we go to the med bay?"

He let out an 'o' of surprise, catching onto what she wanted. Nodding, he guided her through the halls until they found the lab. She sat down on the bed when he asked her to. Taking her arm, the Time Lord carefully turned it in order to get access to the crook of her elbow, moving the pad with the disinfectant over it in a gentle massage. She could barely watch as a tingle prickled her skin under his ministrations and that intense gaze that never left her face. Rose finally turned her had when the needle pierced her skin. She'd never liked that bit, he remembered, chuckling a bit.

"There, all done," he told her as he put the blood sample away for the TARDIS computers to analyze. "I fear it might take a day or two as she is going to do every test she can think of to find out what's wrong with you."

Rose frowned slightly, although she knew he hadn't meant it that way.

"Well, not wrong per se," he hastened to correct himself. "Just… different."

Rose grinned.

"Good different or bad different?" she couldn't resist asking.

"Uh… just different?" he asked back, unsure wether or not he'd been rude again. It was a look she'd seen on John so often…

"Alright! I'm going to bed, then," the brunnete informed him quickly, before he could see the tears that came to her eyes. He still knew, of course, being a Time Lord. He could smell them, almost taste them even. An anguished expression crossed the Doctor's face as he thought about his Rose crying.

"Where do you want to go tomorrow?" he asked to cheer her up. "We could visit Raxocoricophallapatorius, see how Margareth is doing, or Pen Hexico 2, you'd love it there, or how about finally visiting Barcelona- the planet, not the city! See the dogs with no noses, aye?"

"Uhm… could we… just stay in the vortex for a while and… you know, talk this through… a bit…?" came Rose's undertain reply. "If it's not too domestic for you."

"Oh… sure, good idea, could've been mine. Alright, off to bed now," he sent her off, a look of understanding in his eye.

She threw him a grateful smile.

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_It was late at night, but the room was still flooded in artificial light. All the lamps had been switched on by the two people sitting on the couch. A man and a woman. The man was tall, and very thin- and just a little bit foxy! He was wearing a blue suit with red converses and an equally red tie. His brown mob of hair was in more disarray than usual, seeing as he kept combing his long fingers through them. Brown eyes full of affection and excitement stayed focused on the small wooden table before him, even through the late hours._

_The woman, on the other hand, was half asleep with her head on the man's lap, but fighting off her tiredness for the sake of their discussion. Her shoulder-length hair was smooth, and, without any trace of peroxide in it, it was of a light brown colour. Her hazel gaze was barely seen under tired lids, but she still seemed attentive as to the subject._

"What about Nancy?"

"Nah, too… Tyler-ish…"

"Well, I am a Tyler," _she argued._

"No, you're a Smith now, remember? You married me," _he reminded her with a smug tone._

"But Smith isn't even your real name, 'sides Tyler is were I come from."

"It's not where I want him or her to go to, though."

"What about Matthew, for a boy?" _she asked, refusing to comment on his latest explanation._

_He seemed to think about that for a moment, then nodded._

"Yeah, I like Matthew. It's good. Strong. Although, David has a nice ring to it, too," _he suggested, halfaware that his right hand was caressing through her locks, slowly lulling her into sleep._ "And how about… Pia, for a girl. Or Sarah, that's a nice name…"

"Ah!" _her agonized cry stopped his ramblings, and he was leaning over her immediately, asking her what was wring. The pain was so persistant that she couldn't even open her mouth to answer, all she could do was groan at the agony. He didn't waste anymore time in pointless questions, instead picking her up, and carrying her outside, settling her inside their car. No one had gotten his license as quickly as him. He really was a genius, and so he had already figured out what was going on. Still, hope dies last, so he made his way through the barely existant nighttime traffic to Canary Wharf, the base of Torchwood One, where they'd find Martha, so she could take a look at Rose._

_Meanwhile, her screams filled the silence._

Both in the world of her nightmares as in the TARDIS.

**End of chapter 7!**

**A/N: Uh-oh! What now? Leave a review, and find out... ;) Thank you!**


	8. Awake and Dreaming II

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter ****8: Awake and Dreaming II**

"Ah!" _her agonized cry stopped his ramblings, and he was leaning over her immediately, asking her what was wring. The pain was so persistant that she couldn't even open her mouth to answer, all she could do was groan at the agony. He didn't waste anymore time in pointless questions, instead picking her up, and carrying her outside, settling her inside their car. No one had gotten his license as quickly as him. He really was a genius, and so he had already figured out what was going on. Still, hope dies last, so he made his way through the barely existant nighttime traffic to Canary Wharf, the base of Torchwood One, where they'd find Martha, so she could take a look at Rose._

_Meanwhile, her screams filled the silence._

Both in the world of her nightmares as in the TARDIS.

Rose awoke with a start, sounds and images of the past still clear in her mind. It had been so sudden when nature aborted her pregnancy against her fighting body. The battle was long and agonizing, but in the end, nature had won. She always did. At first, Rose hadn't even realized what was happening, unable to think through the haze of pain clouding her existance. John had driven her to Torchwood base, knowing fully well what was happening. He had known this might happen since she told him about expecting a child, but, influenced by his telepathic connection to the Doctor, had chosen to ignore it, too.

When everything came to the light, she had wept without restraint for weeks. He had wanted to comfort her, but, feeling the Doctor's pain, too, had been incapable of doing so. She had ended up comforting him, instead. Who had comforted her? Her friends did, her mother, her not-quite father… everyone, but her husband. Not that she blamed him! Far from it. Having two hearts, the Time Lord Doctor was twice as heartbroken about the miscarriage. And Rose realized that, when she saw all that pain carved upon her husband's face, adding immensly to his own grief. John had had to deal with those feelings, too.

It wasn't his fault.

Still, she wished he could've whispered all those soothing words without that edge in his voice that made her heart clench. She'd been unable to look at him, without having to fight the urge to tell him over and over again, how sorry she was. Something that always seemed to pain him even more, when she failed to restrain herself. Her beloved became depressed to the point any normal human being would commit suicide to get away from all those terrible emotions.

But he'd stayed by her.

He'd stayed close to her, refusing to let her leave to give them both some space. 'We get through this together, or not at all,' he used to say, voice solemn, expression decisive. The young woman had always broken out in sobs when she heard him say that, but had agreed to do it his way. He'd told her about the reasons why it had happened, apologizing endlessly for not saying something before. It was then that they had agreed upon not having any children. They hadn't wanted to take the risk of a repeat.

Neither of them could've dealt with that.

Which gave them even more reason to be surprised when they found out that Rose was pregnant again- a good five years afterwards. Of course, there had been signs. Rose had been sick for months, got dizzy in the middle of an important meeting or even a mission, and had developed an unhealthy appetite for pickles. And she'd absolutely refused to be examinated, until Pete had threatened to suspend her. However, since she'd been on birthcontrol ever since they'd burried their first child, it had been quite the shock, not least of all for Martha herself, when the young medical doctor found out the root of Rose's 'sickness'.

And that she'd been pregnant for a good five months.

And the baby was still alive…

_' "Was" being the operative term,'_ the brunette thought bitterly as she hugged her spare pillow tightly to her body, and sobbed quietly. _'No thanks to those batards of UNIT, I've lost our child again.'_

At those thoughts, she knew that she wouldn't be able to fall asleep again. Tears pricked her eyes as her mind followed her chain of thoughts down the natural course, and she imagined how her baby would've turned out to be. He might have had her eyes, but his father's wild hair and radiant smile. His 'manly' hands, as her husband had always described them, too. Pure genius like his father, but gentle and sensitive to other's problems like her, and not so rude.

And he would've gotten along with her mother!

Rose snorted at that thought, before her gloomy mood returned, remembering that her mother was dead. Pete Tyler had died again, too. And Tony… well, she'd never find out what happened to Tony, unless the Doctor found a way to cross over again, and agreed to help her find him.

The Doctor…

Even if all those things had happened, her child would've had a father. The Doctor had said that he would take care of her, of both of them, and she believed him. He would've taken on the father role that John hadn't been able to. In a sense, he had even been the father of her child- same genes, after all! Would he be a good big brother? Would he look for a way to cross the void, if she asked him to?

She could go and find him. And ask, but then she'd have to explain why she'd been crying, so she brushed that thought aside.

333333333333333333333333333333333

He watched her intently over the kitchen table. Their breakfast laid out before them- courtesy of the TARDIS- he had never spared the food a single glance. That was a first that the sentient ship took as a very grave insult, consequently burning the Time Lord's tongue and lips through overheated-and-never-cooling tea. The Doctor had jumped up and yelped at these antics had gotten to him.

"Silly, old girl," he had mumbled, earning him the loss of his chair as he tried to sit down again, and ended up on his rump.

Rose didn't even giggle.

She hadn't noticed anything that had transpired between the Time Lord and his beloved ship, because she'd still been mulling her thoughts from before over in her head. She hadn't noticed the Doctor's intense stare, nor the TARDIS' comforting hum, not even as the ship's mind brushed her own in the most gentle of caresses. The Doctor had long since realized that something was troubling her, but refrained from asking.

He didn't want to push her.

So, he reached inside his mind for his own inner turmoil he had to sort out sooner rather than later, considering it closely involved the young woman at the opposite end of the table. He loved her, there was no denying it. She knew that he loved her, had probably heard it to no end from his twin. He was fairly confident that she loved him, too, had loved him through the Other Him, and the Other Him through him…

Complicated as it was!

She hadn't taken long to fall into a comfortable relationship with the Other Him. Infact, she'd stated quite clearly to 'John' that she didn't want to repeat past mistakes, didn't want to wait too long, before cruel chance separated them again. After all, either of them could die any day in a crash, or be hit by lightning, or get a terminal disease, or whatever. They hadn't rushed into their relationship, but they hadn't wasted any time either. And yet, with him, it was different. She hadn't needed time with John, why did she need time with him?

He shook his head. No, that was unfair.

With John, he had practically driven her into the man's arms. He'd made a strong point that they were the same person, and then gone to leave her on that beach. He had taken the choice from her, and, not to mention, he hadn't died back then. Of course, she needed time to get over her husband's death. She'd spent ten years with him, and only two with her New New Doctor. And she needed a friend. He could be that, a friend. He'd promised her, and nothing would get into the way of his promise this time!

He couldn't help the sigh, though, which apparently broke Rose out of her reverie, and had her quickly catching onto his own train of thoughts.

"I want this," she blurted out, then blushed, before continuing. "I want us… I just need time. He died, Doctor, to save me, and yes, you did it, too, but that's different. He gave his only life to keep me safe, to take me to you, so that I'd be cared for- so that our child would be cared for."

The Doctor almost winced. Almost.

"He died, and I need to mourn him. I need to distance your existence from his. I thought I'd managed to do so in the past ten years, but seeing you now…makes it all come back again."

At his confused look, she explained.

"You said, you and him were the same man. And you are, yet at the same time, you're not," she clarified further. "He came from you, is…was imprinted with all your thoughts, feelings, everything. He had your memories, but from the first moment of his existence, he became a different man. A different person, someone with a life of his own. He made his own memories, which were different then your's. And most of them, he made with me."

Again, the Doctor could feel the flinch fighting it's way up, but surpressed it.

"And when I look at you now, I see him, and it's not fair to you. To either of us," Rose said. "I love you, but when I look at you, it's like in the hospital. I'm prone to mistake you for him, and that's not right. Both of you deserve to be treated as your own beings. I want… I need to take one step at a time, if we are to…live a life, together this time. Right now, I can't. I just can't look at you without imagening to be with Theta again."

As she finished, the Doctor's eyes grew wide.

"How do you know that name?" he almost demanded.

Now it was Rose turn to look confused.

"Wha- Oh!" she faltered. "He told me. I never called him that in public, of course, but when it was just the two of us… he wanted me to call him by his name. I'm sorry."

The Doctor gulped, took a deep breath and stood. He nodded once, before walking over to her, and, after pulling her to her feet, embracing her tightly.

3333333333333333333333333333333

(the evening before, just after the TARDIS left)

"Think they'll get along?" Martha asked.

"Oh, I don't think getting along will be a problem for them," Mickey spat.

Everyone looked at him, then. Jack and Gwen exchanged meaningful looks.

"Someone's got some jealousy issues that need to be solved," Ianto mumbled.

"I do agree, though," Gwen backed Mickey up a bit. "They'll get along just fine. What do you think, Jack?"

"I don't worry about them getting along, either. It's more the thought that they go back to dancing around their hearts again that's gotten me frustrated that I'm not aboard."

"Oh, please, Jack!" Martha laughed. "You're just sore you don't get the chance to catch them in flagrante delicto…"

Torchwood Three- except for a certain Smith- broke out into hilarious laughter as they made their way back to the hub, while the infamous Captain tried a pretty pout to seem innocent. Everyone knew immediately that Martha had hit the point dead on.

3333333333333333333333

Rose was in heaven and hell as the Doctor hugged her. On one side, she wanted to smack him. She'd just poured him her heart out about how she needed time, and there he went hugging her so tight it made her knees weak. On the other hand, she couldn't help but feel safe and cherished in his embrace like she was some rare and fragile, beautiful creature that he wanted to protect from the whole universe with just his hug.

Suddenly, all too soon, and too late, he pulled away.

"Doctor, can we go back, and see my brother?" she suddenly remembered.

The look of pain that crossed the Time Lord's face spelled trouble.

**End of chapter 8!**

**A/N: Oh, what has happened to Tony? Any ideas? You can find out in the next chapter, if you like. And please leave a review. Thanks!**


	9. Hope Dies Last

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter ****9: Hope Dies Last**

Rose was in heaven and hell as the Doctor hugged her. On one side, she wanted to smack him. She'd just poured him her heart out about how she needed time, and there he went hugging her so tight it made her knees weak. On the other hand, she couldn't help but feel safe and cherished in his embrace like she was some rare and fragile, beautiful creature that he wanted to protect from the whole universe with just his hug.

Suddenly, all too soon, and too late, he pulled away.

"Doctor, can we go back, and see my brother?" she suddenly remembered.

The look of pain that crossed the Time Lord's face spelled trouble.

"No, we can't," he said in a silent, but final voice.

Rose gulped down a sniff.

"Why not?"

"We can't cross the void," the Doctor explained evasively.

"But I did!" the brunette insisted, suddenly angry. She came here, so why couldn't they go back to the other reality?! "I came through the rift. John send me through. Surely, if he could then so can you!"

The Doctor sighed.

"It's not that I can't, per se-"

"You mean you won't? Why?! Why-"

"It's not that, either!" the Doctor cut in decisively.

"Then what?" Rose wanted to know, her tone all but defiant now.

"The rift in Cardiff is sealed. Well, I say sealed, but it's more like a 'closed' sign on the door of a shop. The Other M… John, he wanted you safe, so he made sure that that rift could never be used again. It's still there, but unavaible to anyone from either side. Only things from this, or one of the billions of other universes can get washed through it to Cardiff now."

He could see how it touched her heart, and hurt her at the same time. Her husband, her wonderful, half-alien husband had done all this to protect her, and now she wanted to deliberately put herself in danger again. Some gratefulness that was. Rose sniffed, obviously thinking along the same lines, but she couldn't help it. She wanted, needed her brother to be safe. Needed to save him. He was just thirteen, for god's sake!

"Of course, we could find another," the Doctor conceded. "But to tell whether or not it would lead to the right universe, would take weeks. And the universe is a big place, Rose. It might be centuries before we find the right one- and that is if we find the right one. And we would still lose years while crossing over."

"I didn't," she protested.

"Because you were just one person, well, two… Anyway, the TARDIS may look small on the outside, but in a sense her inside is her real size. It would take us years- figuratively speaking, of course, since there's no time in the Void- to cross over," the Time Lord told her patiently.

"But we've got a time machine," Rose tried one last approach.

The Doctor shook his head.

"The TARDIS draws energy from this universe. You know how exhausted she was when we landed there the first time. She probably couldn't make it between the point the other rift comes out and the Earth, let alone travel backwards a couple of centuries… Now, if my people were still around that wouldn'd be… Doesn't matter. Gone now," he whispered the last part, and Rose felt a pang of guilt for putting him through this. He'd seen so much, lost almost everything, and here she was practically demanding he do something that could kill the last remaining piece of his home.

"I'm sorry, Rose. Your brother is lost."

Oh, and then he had to just go, and say something like that! Something that stung her so deeply that she was too shocked to answer at first. When it all registered in her troubled mind, it boiled down to one universal truth: Rose Tyler was never going to see her brother again! She couldn't take it! She just couldn't! She broke down right infront of him, even her legs refusing to carry her weight. She fell into his arms, which had already been waiting, enveloping her as she screamed and sobbed and cried at the unfairness of it all, tiny fists weakly hitting his chest repeatedly. The Doctor just held her, rubbing comforting circles over her back, whispering his apologies into her ear. His voice so soft, so gentle, she wasn't sure whether she cried herself to sleep or was soothed into it by his caring tone.

333333333333333333333

When she awoke, she found herself in her bedroom, lying sprawled on her bed. Someone had tucked her deeply into the covers, and there was a song in an ancient language playing in the back of her mind. It sounded wonderful, yet so terribly sad, Rose almost started to cry again. Resolving to get up instead, she noticed for the first time that there was someone in the armchair beside her bed. His Hitchhiker's Guide perched on top of his thigh, his body slumped, the Doctor was snoring the day- or was it night?- away.

A small smile graced her lips as she realized that he hadn't left her. He had done exactly what John would always do whenever she was upset about something. There was another pang of guilt, this time because she felt like she was cheating on her husband with this man who was him, and yet wasn't.

What could she do?

She loved her husband, but she loved the Doctor, too. She'd never stopped, and John had both known and accepted that. Could the Doctor do the same? Could he understand that some part of her single heart would never be his again? Oh, if only she'd have two of them like him, then she could give each of them a whole heart. Sighing, she was well aware that she would only ever have one heart, and the Doctor didn't own it completely anymore.

Standing infront of him, the brunette realized how peaceful he looked when sleeping. It was then that her nightmare came back to her.

_The room was brightly illuminated by cold, white light. The walls cleaned to the point of being sterile, everything was held in perfect white. The temperature wasn't low by any means, yet Rose couldn't help but shiver in her dream. The people in the room, scientists or doctors judging by their typical white 'uniform' coats, were all wearing mint green plastic gloves, busying themselves around a metallic table. Another shiver running down her spine, Rose approached them, rounding the table as she went. Against the better knowledge of her instinct, which was telling her to run and never look back, she risked a glance at what was happening. She found herself too shocked to scream when she reckognized her baby brother on the operational table._

"Rose?…Rose!" the Doctor's voice called to her from the real world.

When had he awoken?

With a startled gasp, she came back to realize she'd doubled over as her nightmare made her feel sick, landing herself right atop of him.

"Oh, god…Doctor! They're hurting him! They're… they're…"

"Ssh, Rose, it was just a dream," he calmed her, taking her into his arms again. "It was just a bad dream, nothing else. Hush, love, it's over now."

Rose was too absorbed in her pain to realized what the Doctor had just said, but said Time Lord was about ready to kick himself. He had promised to be her friend, and again he was treading that dangerous path to act like he was something more. Well, he was, she had admitted to want him to be. But she still needed her time, and he was more than willing to give it to her.

If only his rebellious hearts would agree.

"Is there no way? Really no way, Doctor?" she cried, clutching at him.

The Doctor thought about it for a moment.

"Well… There is this…ah…I hesitate to say 'man', but… I have this…friend, sort of. He should be able to tell you what happened. Just tell you, Rose. He can't help us cross, so you must be very sure if you want to know. Because some truths can only hurt," the Time Lord whispered, voice full of melancholy.

"I want to know," she said, but the Doctor shook his head.

"No, take your time. You just had a nightmare. Try to reason it out-"

"Tony is my brother, there is nothing to reason out, Doctor!" she snapped, then her anger deflated immediately. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright," he answered, kissing the top of her hair. "What isn't, is your nightmare. Had any more of those?"

Rose nodded.

"And I find it difficult to fall asleep."

"Why's that?"

"I always seem to wait for John to come to bed from some of his 'jiggery-pokery'. He always did that in his free time," she smiled sadly. "It's like I'm so used to falling asleep with another body- with him- beside me that I can't get any rest without him."

"Ah, I might have something for that," the Doctor replied. Without another word, he took Rose by her hand, and led her out into the TARDIS. Slowly walking down several hallways, and managing to take the wrong turn once in a while (always apparent through the Doctor's mumbled curses), he led her to another bedroom. It was decorated entirely in shades of blue, but apparently it hadn't been used for quite some time. While the Doctor retrieved something from it's position atop the fluffy pillows, Rose became intrigued with a photograph on the nightstand beside the bed. It showed a young woman with her arms around a grumpy looking older man with a very prominent nose.

Before Rose could contemplate the picture any further, she was brought face to face with…

**End of chapter 9!**

**A/N: With what? Any ideas? Suggestions? Requests?... As for Tony, I know many of you would've probably liked it if Rose got back to him, but I just couldn't think of a way to fit him inside my story without it being awkward, so... I thought of something else. Sorry, and I hope you continue reading anyway. ;)  
Please leave a review.**

**Mayet**


	10. Family Matters

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter ****10: Family Matters**

"I always seem to wait for John to come to bed from some of his 'jiggery-pokery'. He always did that in his free time," she smiled sadly. "It's like I'm so used to falling asleep with another body- with him- beside me that I can't get any rest without him."

"Ah, I might have something for that," the Doctor replied. Without another word, he took Rose by her hand, and led her out into the TARDIS. Slowly walking down several hallways, and managing to take the wrong turn once in a while (always apparent through the Doctor's mumbled curses), he led her to another bedroom. It was decorated entirely in shades of blue, but apparently it hadn't been used for quite some time. While the Doctor retrieved something from it's position atop the fluffy pillows, Rose became intrigued with a photograph on the nightstand beside the bed. It showed a young woman with her arms around a grumpy looking older man with a very prominent nose.

Before Rose could contemplate the picture any further, she was brought face to face with…

…a teddy bear…

"Doctor?" the brunette asked sceptically.

When she looked up into his face to see what this was about, she found him grinning foolishly, and maybe a little embarrassed, rubbing the back of his neck. She looked from him to the stuffed bear, then back again. He seemed to squirm underneath her gaze as if he was regretting ever showing her to this room. A slight gasp escaped her, then a giggle, when the thought that this might be the Doctor's room crossed her mind.

"What is there to laugh about?" he pouted.

She just giggled more.

"Is this… your teddy, Doctor?" she asked, mirth in her eyes.

"No!" he protested harshly, rubbing his right eye with a finger as nervousness overtook him again. "No, it… I didn't have a stuffed animal when I was a kid. It would've been a very un-time-lord-y thing, my people wouldn't have allowed it- shame, really, 'cause I think every little kid should have a stuffed animal in his or her youth. Not necessarily a bear- I would've much prefered a phoenix; beautiful animals, those, you should see them, Rose; all red and golden they are-

"Doctor…"

"Ah, rambling again, am I?"

"Yep," she said, popping the 'p' like he always did.

"Well, yeah, un-time-lord-y thing. 'Sides, my people didn't get off the planet much, and we didn't make stuffed animals, so it couldn't be mine. Of course, I could've buyed one later on during my time as a traveller, but I was already an adult, then. No point in having a stuffed animal anmore. Although, I did actually buy it… Not for me, mind you…"

"Whose is it, then?" Had he travelled with a child? Rose shook her head at the absurdity of that thought. The Doctor would never put a child into danger like that. Would he?

"Ah, it belonged to Susan."

"Susan?" she wondered.

"My granddaughter," the Doctor hastened to clarify, once he reckognized Rose's tone.

"You…You're a grandpa?" the brunette asked, incredulously.

"Told you I was a dad, once. And if you're as old as me, you're bound to be a granddad, too."

Rose contemplated this for a moment, deciding that he was right.

"Where is she? I mean, did she…" She couldn't bring herself to say it, when she noticed that all too familiar spark of pain in his eyes. I appeared every time he thought of the Time War, everytime he lost someone, or thought about those whose lifes had been altered for the worse upon meeting him.

"She left me to marry a man in the future- well, your future. I haven't seen her since, but if she got the call from the Council, it's safe to say she followed it, and… and b-burned al-along with…" The Doctor took a couple of deep breath to calm himself. Now he couldn't even say his home's name anymore. He had guessed that he'd been over it- well, as over it as you can ever be to have killed your own people, and destroyed your world. But now, thinking of Susan and the Time War together, he couldn't handle the thought of what he'd done.

A hand on his cheek broke him out of his darker thoughts to find Rose looking at him, so very sorry to have mentioned it. One arm snaked around the stuffed bear, he was still holding out to her, and took it's suddenly unbearable weight from him. The other stayed warm against the coolness of his skin, thumb softly brushing away the tear he hadn't known he had shed. He couldn't help his hand gripping her's, pressing it closer against his face as he snuggled into her burning human touch. His eyes closed, concentrating solely on the feelings stirred by his beloved's closeness, by the touch of her palm, and the rough pads of her fingertips, and the petal softness of her lips as she kissed him. It was short and sweet. It wasn't a lover's kiss, not really, but just a kiss for the sake of a kiss.

He felt strangely comforted.

His hand let go of her's as he encircled her shoulders with his arm, drawing her in. Crushing the teddy bear between their bodies, he just held onto her like she was his lifeline, and in that moment, Rose realized that, in a sense, she was. Smiling lightly, the young woman held him just as fiercely, letting him know that she was there, and how she needed him just as much as he needed her.

He let go of her, then, before he could do something that would hurt her emotionally.

"Right," he cheered, masking his demons once more. "Go take Mr. Fluff- Susan's choice, not mine; she was very little back then- to your room, and when you get back to the console room, we'll…uhm…have landed."

333333333333333333333333333

"We need an alien invasion," Martha suddenly stated, startling everyone from their thoughts as they quietly ate their pizza.

The rest of Torchwood Three- minus Jack, who was making calls from his office- looked at her as if she'd grown two heads. The slice of pizza he'd just been about to stuff into his hungry mouth, slipped from Mickey's fingers, and landed with a disgusting 'splash' one the floor. The man cursed loudly at this, interrupting the silence, and prompting Ianto to swear that he would not clean that up for him. This left Gwen who was still raising her eyebrow at their medical doctor in question.

"Excuse me?" she finally prompted.

"For Jack, I mean," Martha explained, pointing vaguely at the obviously very grouchy false Captain who was glaring at his phone as if it was the root of all evil. "I think he really wanted to travel with the Doctor and Rose, and not just to catch them in a precarious situation. I think it really meant a lot to him, and being turned down- by Rose, no less- kinda hurt him, even if he doesn't want to admit it, 'cause he's been unbearable ever since.

Gwen followed her friend's pointing, watching as their immortal team leader shouted at the person at the other end of the line over something as trivial as a few utensils they needed for their office, before slamming the receiver down with a good 'smack'. The dark-haired woman winced as the sound filled the silence- except of Mickey's and Ianto's bickering- of the hub at lunch time.

"I think maybe you're right," she admitted. "I don't think our phones can handle much more of his abuse."

"Or our colleagues in Glasgow, or at UNIT," Ianto chimed in, before going back to arguing.

"Or us, for that matter," Martha agreed.

"Yeah, an alien invasion sounds about nice, right now," Gwen grinned at the only other lady on the team. "Maybe we should just set a weevil free in the hub, and let Jack catch it. That way, he'd be distracted for a while."

"No chance, last time you did that, that thing destroyed half the things on my desk!" Mickey protested immediately.

"How about sending him to go out for a walk with our pterodactyl?" Ianto suggested. "I still have some dark chocolate, somewhere."

"Nah, the city would panic," Gwen argued.

"Oh, I know!" Mickey cried triumphantly. "Ianto, and I hold him down, and Martha gives him a sedative!"

By the apalled looks on their white faces, he realized what must be going on.

"He's standing right behind me, isn't he?"

333333333333333333333333

"So, where are we?" Rose wanted to know as she watched the Doctor grab his coat.

"Dunno. Some planet I chose at random," he answered.

"What? I though we were gonna meet that friend of yours."

"We will, if he's there."

"You don't know where he is?"

"Well, you can't exactly visit him unless he calls you to him. Let's just hope, he followed my call this time," the Doctor told her seriously, although he wasn't so sure if it would be a bad thing if his 'friend' wasn't there. Maybe it was for the better, if Rose never knew what happened to her brother. But, he would try for her.

He had promised her that.

They exited through the TARDIS doors, and the Doctor knew at once that his hopes had been invane. The man had come, was standing only a few feet away from them. White was his hair, and wrinkled his skin. The colour of snow was his suit, and shoes, and a red flower was attached to the lapels of his jacket. A cowboy hat sat upon his head, eyes sparkling with the wisdom of his years.

"Rose, may I introduce to you the White Guardian. He's the anthropomorphic personification of order."

"Hello," the brunette greeted the older man nervously. "Nice to meet ya…Uhm…we came here… to…uhm…I wanted to know what…h-happened t-to my bro…brother, sir."

"I know why you came, child," the White Guardian said with a touch of amusement in his voice. "But do you really wish for me to divulge that knowledge. It might not be what you want to hear."

"I'll take that risk, thanks," Rose responded, more confident now that he was making the same point as the Doctor.

"Very well," the White Guardian conceded, and the Doctor stepped up behind Rose, putting his hands on her shoulders to let her know he was there for her. "The other universes UNIT klled your parents to get to you and your husband, the half-human, half-Time-Lord clone of the Doctor, known to most as Doctor John Smith. Knowing that something like this might happen his parents sent him away to a boarding school, where he would be taken care of. UNIT, however, discovered this shortly after your escape, and made their way to find him. They took him in, and, seeing as he was born from parents from different universes, with both atron energy and void particles in his body, resolved to test on him. See, if his immune system was affected, and, if so, if they could use whatever they found to-"

"Stop!" Rose finally cried. She'd been shaking her head all this time, feeling sick again as she understood just how real her dream had been.

"They wanted, but they didn't experiment on him."

"What?" both Rose and the Doctor wondered aloud.

"That universe's Lucy Saxon shot her husband one evening, and with his death all UNIT- British branch- activities had to come to an end until it was determined another President, and he or she would permit their continuation. Harriet Jones came to power once more, and she took Tony under her wing. He grew up and lived as her adoptive grandson, went to school, made his A-levels, became a doctor, and lived a life. Not always happy, not continuously sad, he never forgot his older sister, and hoped that she was safe. He even named his daughter Jaqueline Rose Tyler…"

And then they were kissing…

**End of chapter 10!**

**A/N: Yes, I know, evil cliffhanger! But what can I say, I got to keep my readers interested, and don't you just want to know what happens next? :P Don't worry, I'll update soon- all the sooner with a few reviews... ;) LOL**


	11. Movie Night

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own After the Sunset, sadly.

**Chapter ****11: Movie Night**

Rose had sobbed. The Doctor distinctly remembered her to have sobbed, tears of joy meshed with sadness streaming down her reddened cheeks. Happy and sad that her brother had had, or would have-from her point of view- a wonderful life, never forgetting his sister, always wishing her well, but unable to see her again. She at least had the advantage of knowing what would happen to her brother (of course in other alternative realities he might not be quite so lucky, but the Doctor was content not mentioning that little detail), while he would never find out if his sister had made it.

The Time Lord remembered all this.

It was what came afterwards that he wasn't so sure about. He didn't know who had moved first, because he had definitely been about to hug her to him once more. But then he found her hands on either side of his face, nails almost digging into his scalp as she yanked him down into a bruising hard kiss of relief. Unsure how to respond, the Last of the Time Lords stood there gaping like a fish. Rose didn't take atvantage of his slightly parted mouth, although he was certain that he wouldn't have minded, but she either didn't notice or didn't care to deepen the kiss.

Which led to the Doctor's first panic attack.

What if she wasn't doing this on purpose? What if she hadn't realized that she was kissing him? Although, how you couldn't realize that when you could feel a pair of cold- literally- and out of stupor unresponsive lips against your mouth lacked any logic. Still, maybe she wasn't aware of whom she was kissing. She could be thinking about her husband, even though that thought hurt, while she snogged him.

Was he taking advantage of her, then?

He tried to dismiss that thought, as he wasn't the one doing the snogging. But his incredible mind wouldn't shut up about how he wasn't ending their liplock either. A fact, which, in the moral side of his brain, made him just as responsible as Rose herself. Although, one could argue that, since she didn't know she was snogging him, she couldn't be held responsible. Plus, he was shell-shocked! That got to be mitigating circumstances!

Still, why wasn't he stopping?

_'Because you like it,'_ his moral side said, sounding utterly disgusted.

And it was true. He just needed to focus for a second on the emotional part, and he found distinct proof in the jittery fluttering of his hearts that he absolutely loved kissing her, even if it was nothing like he had imagined. He had imagined their first kiss to be gentle, and loving. So soft, you could barely feel it, but slowly growing in intensity (he was not counting the time his ninth had to kiss her to save her life, or the wild snog Cassandra had given him through Rose's lips, or their comfort brush of lips earlier).

He had imagined their first kiss to be out of love, not relief.

Still, he couldn't help but like it, and so he was very much disappointed when his beloved suddenly pulled away from him, flushed and embarrassed, as she realized what had been happening. Her apologetic look told him that, like he had dreaded, she had mistaken him for his twin. She excused herself, and made a dash for the TARDIS, only to stop upon entering, and run back up to give the Doctor a peck on the lips shyly.

He still stood, gaping, when a chuckle broke him out of his just-snogged stupor.

"This is not funny," he grumbled at the elder man.

The Guardian didn't answer, except for another chuckle.

Growling and cursing under his breath, the Time Lord swanned off back to his wonderful Blue Box. He found the console room to be devoid of any companion, and wondered just how exactly they were to 'talk this through' if they never got down to talking at all! Sighing, he asked his ship where his favorite stupid ape was hiding, and was directed to the wardrobe room, where he found her asleep on a pile of clothing, his ninth's leather jacket hugged tightly around her body, and his granddaughter's teddy bear crushed against her chest.

He couldn't help the smile that broke out on his face.

The Learning of Tony's fate had exhausted her so, she had fallen prey to slumber as soon as she had reached her hide out. This was probably the only reason the TARDIS had told him where to find her, so she wouldn't wake up aching from the uncomfortable position. Another sigh leaving the Doctor's mouth, he picked her up gently, and carried her to her room. Laying her down on her bed, and tugging her lilac sheets around her, he made sure his leather jacket would stay in place. Before taking his seat in her armchair again, however, he shrugged out of his coat to lay it atop of her.

33333333333333333333333333333

"You're here," were her first words once she had woken up to find him sitting across from her.

He just nodded.

"Had any nightmares?" he wondered.

She pondered this for a moment.

"Not that I remember," Rose smiled, then. "Seems like your teddy trick is working."

The Doctor returned her smile twice as radiant, pleased with himself at her compliment. He then marked the site in his book he had just been reading, and stood up to walk over to her. Resting one of his large hands against her cheek, he brushed a few strands away from her face with the other. Leaning in, he was glad that she trusted him, not flinching away, and kissed her forehead gently.

"I'm going to make us some dinner. And then, how about a movie. Your pick?" he suggested, his baritone voice dropping another octave without his consent.

Rose swallowed hard at this. There it was, another reminder of her husband. That had been John's bedroom voice. Judging by the frown upon the Doctor's face, he hadn't meant to sound so… desireable, but still… It was becoming painfully clear just how similar the Doctor and her husband really were. Rose's mind was immediately set to wonder what else was the same. Would the Doctor's kisses be as loving as John's? Or so passionate it made her knees grow weak, when he wanted her writhing in his arms? Would he ebrace her so tight that she could feel every curve of his body even through their pajamas, when they shared a bed? And how would he make love to her? Would he be…

She blinked, not believing that she'd just let her mind drift into the gutter, when the Doctor was being such a wonderful friend- even if he had used that voice!

"Rose?" he inquired.

She hadn't answered yet.

"Uhm… yeah, that sounds nice," she stammered rapidly.

"Okay," he let out as he raised his eyebrow at her antics. "Then go pick your chick-fl… ah, movie when you're ready, and wait for me. I'll come over with dinner… Uh…you remember where the cinema room is, right?"

She nodded.

"Alright! Good. Take some blankets with you to snuggle into."

He gifted her with another one of his infamous grins, before running of to the kitching, skipping in his steps, and whistling as he did so. A set of giggles that bubbled up in his brown-haired companion at the sight of him, followed the Time Lord through the hallways- courtesy of the TARDIS. But the Doctor couldn't be bothered. He was too happy she was back, and had agreed to snuggle under the blankets with him while watching a movie- cough insufferable chick-flic cough.

And the best part was, the TARDIS had their food already cooked and portioned on the dishes when he reached the kitchen. The old girl had taken the liberty to do all of Rose's favourites, and some traditional meals from Gallifrey out of the ingredients she cultivated in one of her gardens. He'd have to show Rose those, one day soon, he decided. She would love them, all those flowers, and trees, and those millions of butterflies fluttering around. Oh, and they'd have to go at night once, too, to see the- for lack of a better word in the human laguage- fireflies.

Still whistling, the Last of the Time Lords, took hold of the small carriage, and pushed it down the hallways to the cinema room. Rose had already made herself comfortable on the couch. When she heard him enter, she held up the DVD she had chosen- After the Sunset- but dropped it onto the floor, shocked as she saw the amounts of food he was bringing. She had obviously expected sandwhiches or something.

"You can't have cooked all that in so little time," she insisted, but looked at his face for confirmation anyway.

"No, the TARDIS did. She seems to think you're too thin," the Doctor chuckled, and a low grumble of the ship followed, which Rose interpreted as cursing at his ungratefullness.

"I'm very grateful. Thank you, old girl," she said aloud, and was rewarded with another soft caress along her the 'lines' of her consciousness as she let her eyes roam over the food. She spotted a half-opened red fruit, she guessed, with a mint green interior, and pointed at it. "What is that?"

The Doctor followed her finger point.

"Oh, that's a typical fruit from my home. The TARDS grows the trees on a plantation on board, and wanted to do something nice for me. Infact, if you look closely enough, you'll find several other dishes you don't know from Earth. They're all good to eat for humans, though. As for that fruit… They're very sweet, you should try them. You'd love them, but they're dessert."

He grinned at her once more, and Rose just nodded, deciding that it couldn't hurt. Placing the small carriage infront of them, they sat down on the couch, and let the TARDIS take care of the rest. Grabbing for the tapas in the relative darkness of the cinema room, Rose couldn't distinguish which was Earth food and which not, until she had already put them into her mouth. She had to admit that while they were of very foreign taste, they were all very delicious in their own ways.

While she was still contemplating this, the Doctor, being able to see quite clearly in the dark due to his enhanced senses, resolved to offering her a bit of one of his planet's dishes. She couldn't see much, was barely able to make out that it seemed to be some sort of pie, as he held it infront of her lips. Trusting him, she took a mouthful and marveled at how it could taste so sweet and spicy at the same time. There was obviously some sort of meat involved, but the spices were completely foreign to her. When she wanted to take another bite to sample the food, she found that his fingers were just disappearing into his own mouth along with the pie, and could only shake her head with laughter.

He grinned at her, taking one of her hands in one of his, and snaking his other arm around her shoulder- pulling her into him until her head rested on his chest. She breathed in his scent, and found the first real difference to her husband. John had smelled very similar to the Doctor, but more… human. He had smelt of sweat and mortality. She couldn't give a better description. The Doctor on the other hand, barely ever sweat, and had a slightly more…dusty scent, like something really old. Like Time. Not unpleasant, just different.

Rose decided she liked it, and took another deep breath.

"When the movie is over," he suddenly announced in that voice again, and it made her shiver in anticipation. "I'd like to show you something."

Needless to say, Rose could hardly wait!

**End of chapter 11!**

**A/N: Aw, aren't they sweet? What will happen next?**

Although, are there any scenarios in particular you'd like seeing in this fanfic? If so, just tell me, and I'll think it over.

**As for Susan's fate, I' sorry that I can't accomodate your wishes, because I really don't know anything about her beyond what I've mentioned in the last chapter. I'm sorry. If I can find some information, I'll try to slip it in, but I'm not making any promises on that.**


	12. Garden Of Memories

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own 'O' sole mio'

**Chapter 12: Garden Of Memories**

Halfway through the movie, Rose had almost wished she would've picked another film. Her and the Doctor's relationship was quite similar to the main characters' in her eyes. They cared for each other dearly, but outward circumstances and their own ambitions drove them apart relentlessly. She'd inadvertedly snuggled even closer to the Doctor over the course of the film, not feeling his body stiffen when her chest started to mold against his side.

The Time Lord in question on the other hand had been all too aware of the sudden intimacy of the situation, and was now more happy than ever that Rose had asked one Captain Jack Harkness to stay on Earth for the duration of them healing their damaged relationship. Otherwise he'd never live this down. He had promised to be her friend, but found it very hard to keep his thoughts platonic when she was pressed so deliciously against him, and her supple flesh brushed against his chest with every breath she took.

Therefore, each of them for their own reasons, both were very grateful for the distraction their walk through the TARDIS provided from their thoughts after the movie was over. The sentient ship seemed to notice their turmoil, and decided to 'help out' by redirecting them through several of her rooms. They came across a swimming pool, a jacuzzi, a Ferris wheel, a canal with gondolas and a real life gondoliere who was singing O' sole mio non stop, a dungeon (the kinky kind- the Doctor shrugged at Rose's suspicious gaze, apparently not remembering when he'd been in need of such), and a ball room where soft music floated through the air.

The Doctor glared at his ship.

_'That isn't helping,'_ he told her.

The TARDIS hummed smugly.

Finally, they reached the door that the Doctor had been looking for. It didn't look much different from any other door on board of the TARDIS, but once they got closer, Rose realized that it was made out of real wood. A carefully arranged boquet of flowers was carved into it, and painted in gold. Underneath, she could find several lines of symbols belonging to the Doctor's language, which the TARDIS would not translate. The old girl didn't need to, though, because in that moment, the Doctor opened the door for her, and led her inside.

Rose gasped.

She was standing in the most beautiful garden she'd ever seen. It was nighttime, apparently, because the artificial sky was turned a dark shade of blue. A light breeze floated through the air, making the grass and flowers rustle in their movement. Said flowers seemed to be in full bloom even though there was no sun, filling the darkness with their strangely well visible vibrant colours.

The illusion was perfect, she noticed.

Sweaping her gaze over the room, she couldn't make out the end!

The Doctor chuckled as he let her take a few minutes to get a first impression. Offering her his arm, he escorted her to what appeared to be the only tree in this garden, it's silvery leaves falling around them like a curtain as they sat down. He remarked it to be a tree of his home planet, while the brunette caressed her hand over the roughness of the trunk as if disbelieving of it's actual existence.

"Ah, the spectacel begins," the Doctor's voice broke her out of her musings.

Confused at his words, she looked up, just in time to see a myriad of tiny bubbles of light ascend from the blossoms, slowly illuminating the whole room. She couldn't help as another gasp escaped her lips, seeing all these tiny lights dance across the clearing so freely, yet apparently with organisation. And then the next miracle happened. A song drifted through the air, ancient and wonderful with such sweet melody.

"What are they?"

"Suns," the Doctor replied simply.

"You're kidding," Rose said, looking at him.

He shook his head.

"That's what they are. They're suns. Miniature living suns. That's why I didn't realize it when I was stuck on that spaceship that was falling into a sun with Martha. I had never seen one so big before… Uhm…did John tell you about…"

"About what you were up to while I was fighting my way back through the universes?" she grinned.

He rubbed his neck sheepishly, embarrassed that she'd outdone him, and managed that impossibility.

"Yeah, he did," Rose decided to ease his tension. "He told me everything. Including the time you snogged Martha- really, haven't known her for a day, and already your tongue down her throat! Quite the Casanova, you are!"

Now he felt the need to explain himself.

"I didn't snog her!" he protested vehemently. "And I most definitely didn't shove my tongue down her throat- can't imagine that to be pleasant anyway. I mean it's bound to inhibit your airways, and I don't think that's something to desire. Especially when you don't have a respiratory bypass system. You always need a good amount of oxygen supply.. Anyway…It was lip-contact only. And that was a genetic transfer; to stall the Judoon."

"Easy for you to say that now!" Rose teased him mercilessly.

The Doctor huffed indignantly.

"And then there was the time you snogged that nurse…"

"That wasn't me!…Well, yes it was, but I was human, and I couldn't remember my life as a Time Lord-"

"John said you could remember quite a bit," Rose interrupted.

"But I thought it was only a story. A dream I was having," her Time Lord pouted.

"Oh, and let's not forget Donna. You snogged Donna," the brunette laughed hilariously.

The Doctor looked horrified.

"Technically, she snogged me, and that was for life-preservation-purposes only. And don't. Ever. Remind. Me. Of. That. Ever. Again."

"And then there was River…"

He turned deathly quiet at that.

"I'm sorry. From what John told me that she meant quite a lot to you. I shouldn't have mentioned it," Rose apologized, squeezing his hand gently as she took it into her's.

"No."

"Huh?"

"You've got it wrong. I didn't love her."

"But-"

"I told you, before you came aboard. I had pretended to love a woman, when all I could see was you. I have pretended to love River to safe those 4022 people in the library. I even told her my name, but it had nothing to do with me being in love with her. She was a good friend, a sister maybe, and under different circumstances… but they weren't different, and I didn't love her like that. I couldn't. Because every time she took my hand, everytime her arms slipped around my body, everytime she kissed me, all I could think about was how much I wanted her to be brunette with peroxid blonde hair, and how I craved to look into her eyes to see that hazel colour of yours' that tells me I'm home…" the Doctor recalled those memories with closed eyes, when suddenly pain and self-loathing overtook his features. "I played my part well, though, even if I refused to _dance_ with her. Told her I couldn't, because of my alien-ness and stuff… I must've been pretty convincing. She really thought I was in love with her, and I sent her to her death. Some bastard I am…"

He finished in a whisper.

Rose looked at him shocked, but reacted immediately when the whimper in his voice registered in her mind. She embraced his head, and pulled it down into her lap, softly raking her slender fingers through his messy hair. She kept murmuring soothing words against his scalp, until her own voice was barely audible from the strain. Hours it must've been that they sat there, before Rose began her part of the story to distract him as much as to talk about it out of her own need to do so.

"You know," she began hoarsely. "John always took me for a walk in the parks, wherever we were. Even on an important assignment, he always found the time to just walk and talk for a few hours. That's when I heard his story- your story, really. He never seemed to tire to talk about what you've up to, not only when I was in the parallel universe, but also before you knew me. He made it a habit to pick out the best stories- with a full description of your face and attire for your adventures from before I met you- and use them as a bedtime story for Tony."

She snorted.

"Oh, how my little brother loved him. John was the hero of his childhood, and his best buddy. The times the two of them planned and perfectly executed a prank drove mum around the bin. Dad and I always laughed about it, watching a grown man play with a little boy, impersonating a little boy himself. They adored each other. Especially, once we'd come to terms with the fact that we couldn't have children of our own."

A sniff resounded in the air.

"I think, in a sense, Tony was the son John would've liked. When we realized it wasn't meant to be, both of us tried to compensate our loss with work as well as playing with my little brother. Saving everyone else, because we weren't able to save our own baby- boy or girl, whatever it would've been… But those walks started long before then. In Norway already, while we were waiting for my dad to pick us up."

"And he told you my… his… our… oh, the pronouns are a pain!" the Doctor huffed, looking up at her from his position in her lap. "I mean The Name, though. He told you The Name."

She nodded.

"Not immediately," she clarified. "He said he wanted to make it a special occasion, but was unsure when it would be. He said it was part of a bonding ceremony, but that he didn't care about that as long as the moment felt perfect to tell me. It was almost cute to see him struggle like that. I told him that it didn't matter, that he didn't have to tell me at all, but he said he wanted to do it. Wanted to hear me say it, say his name. And so, one evening as we sat on the couch just snuggling infront of the fire, he told me. It was just at the end of christmas, even. Said he wanted to make this christmas perfect."

She could feel the Doctor nod against her thigh as she looked up at the night sky, a small smile gracing her lips.

"Do you mind?" she suddenly blurted out. "That I know, I mean."

"No," the Doctor responded without hesitation. "I wanted to tell you, too. I've wanted to tell you for quite some time before we were separated at Canary Wharf, but… I was afraid. I had never planned to grow that close with a companion, and yet, you wore down all my defenses. Well, old Me's defenses, and that's saying something. After all that, I couldn't possibly regenerate into a man that wouldn't lo…"

He stopped apruptly, gazing up at her face. He saw the smile had turned sad.

"Are you ever gonna finish that sentence you started on that godforsaken beach?" she asked, pain obvious in her voice. "Are you ever gonna say it, Doctor?"

He pondered that for a moment. It didn't need saying, did it? And yet, these humans spend half their life looking, searching for the right person to say it to, and then they grip and hold on. It were just three little words, but they had so much impact, they might as well be three little worlds. His worlds. Coming to a conclusion, he sat up, and took her hands in his, causing her to look at his serious face.

"Yes, I will," he told her, this woman who held his hearts, solemnly. "I'll say them every day for you. I'll say them so often you'll get sick of hearing them."

"Never," she smiled.

"I'll say them one day, Rose. Soon."

He made it a promise.

And he had every intention of keeping it!

**End of chapter 12!**

**A/N: Well, I hope you liked it. Thought, I'd throw in a bit more fluff and romance still.**

As for the request that Jenny may join the show, well, fanfic... I think I have an idea that might work with her, but I'll need to see how this story works out, so I won't make any promises as of yet.

If there are any more requests, wishes or ideas for this story, please, feel free to tell me. I'll consider everything.


	13. Test Results

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 13: Test Results**

"Wakey-wakey, sleepy-head!" a crazy voice shouted as the slightly mad alien it belonged to blundered into her darkened room. "Really, the amount of time you humans waste on sleeping! Did you know that you sleep away half your lives, my dear? Well, it's true. Always falling into that near unconscious state at night, and not coming back into the realm of the living until a good way into the next day, you completely miss out on all the wonderful things you can do in the middle of night… nothing comes to mind now, but that doesn't mean you can't have fun in the late hours- or the early ones for that matter…"

He received nothing but an incoherent groan for his babbling rush.

"Oh, come on, Rose. It's time to rise and shine! The sun is high in the sky already!" he informed her, before thinking better of it. "Well, technically the sun is neither high nor low in the sky, 'cause she isn't really in the sky at all. She's out of the atmosphere, which is good, since she'd burn anything to crisps if she weren't. And we wouldn't want Earth- or any other planet- to be burned to crisps by their own sun. At least not yet. Although, that wouldn't happen if it were living mini-suns like you saw in the garden-"

Another desperate noise conveying her need for sleep was ignored.

"And aside from that, the sun isn't really high or low anywhere, 'cause she's just there," he continued to lecture her. 'She's a fixed star, well, when I say fixed I mean, obviously she does m- Rose? Rose, are you listening to me?"

"Nuh…" came the hopeful reply- hopeful that he'd leave her alone.

No such luck.

"Oh, Rose. You gotta listen to what I say!" he whined, and sounded so put out and wounded that Rose couldn't help, but come forth from under the covers to take a good look at his face. A moment later, she wished she hadn't done so. He was using that pout again, that pout that had always made her do whatever he wanted in the past- at least for the time she'd been in his presence.

As soon as he'd let her out of his eyes, she'd gone and wandered off again.

The brunette grinned at the memory, which the Doctor unfortunately took as a sign that she was wide awake now, and ready to learn. Not a second later, his mouth started to ramble about his knowledge of suns and stars all over again, leaving her with nothing as a defence but her weakened sighs of mental agony at eight o'clock in the TARDIS morning.

The sentient space ship hummed apologetically, and sent her another mental caress.

This was beginning to be weird, Rose concluded. Well, technically it had been weird from the beginning, but the young woman had just brushed it off for the time being, more interested in repairing her relationship to this alien madman than finding out what was going on inside her head- or the ship's head. And maybe the TARDIS had always been able to do that, but had refrained from actually doing it, but had missed her a bit since she'd been gone too- and there hadn't been enough time during their very brief reunion when the Doctor was about to regenerate, or after they came back from the Dalek crucible…

Oh great, now she was starting to fall into 90 miles per hour rambles, too.

_'Joy!'_ she cheered on silently. _'But I really need to ask the Doctor about that.'_

"…oh, and before I forget … the TARDIS has completed her tests," said Time Lord suddenly remembered telling her.

After a few seconds of gaping at him like a fish, and a cry of frustration that he hadn't told her so before, Rose was out of bed in a flash. Quickly grabbing hold of the first articles of clothing in her room (she really needed to go shopping; pink just wasn't her colour anymore), she ran into the adjoining bathroom, rushing through her daily procedures to get ready. Thus, she only noticed in the last moment that, in her haste, she'd brought to sweatshirts, but no pants. With an undignified yelp, Rose made a face as she realized that she'd have to go out into her room- where the Doctor was most definitely still waiting for her- in only her panties and her hoodie to get the much-needed garment.

Blushing furiously, she opened the bathroom door a crack. Maybe she could slip out, unnoticed…

_'Yeah, right…'_

"Ah, ready already?" the Doctor's voice drifted over to her, surprised. "Hah! That rhymes, well it more than rhymes… 'Ready already', 'ready already', 'ready already'… that's funny, you should try saying that, it's funn- oh…"

The Doctor seemed to lose all ability of coherence, once he noticed the reason for Rose's blush, which he had thought out of place at first. She was half-naked. Rose. Half-naked. In front of him. And he was staring. Why was he staring? Open mouthed, no less. Her just sinfully red undergarments couldn't be the reason, nor the delicious show of the creamy skin of her slightly muscular thighs on display, right?

So why was he staring?

Better yet, why wasn't he stopping…like, now?

"Oh…uhm…" was all he could say, when he could finally tear his eyes away from that celestial sight, to find her gaze again.

Rose's lips were quirked teasingly.

"If I had known that this would shut you up so effectively, I would have done so a long time ago," she mocked him.

He should feel insulted, he knew, but how could he at the sight in front of him? Or maybe he was, but it was drowned out completely by the giddiness that flooded him. Along with an unwanted, though enjoyable rush of arousal. The Last of the Time Lords suddenly felt rather warm, and made a mental note to make a few adjustments to the heating system. Granted, it was always a bit warm for him, but Rose was human, and couldn't hold out in the temperatures that were optimal for his Time-Lord-y self. Still, it was more than apparent that the heating system must be broken, since Rose was feeling it, too. Her flushed face was evident proof of that, right?

_'It's nothing serious, though,'_ the Doctor comforted himself and the TARDIS._ 'You're an old girl, after all…'_

_'You, my dear Doctor,'_ the ship replied, while giving the Time Lord the impression of twitching her non-existent eyebrow, _'…you know exactly that this is not me needing mallet-treatment, but your own dirty mind, you old git.'_

The Doctor pouted.

Rose had finally slipped her legs into a pair of jeans, and the most wonderful sight was taken from the Doctor. His pout grew for a few seconds, there, before he could control his facial features. It was enough for Rose to notice, though, or at least that was what the spreading of her cheeky, if a bit shy grin suggested. The Doctor chose to clear his throat to override the awkward moment, before hurrying out of the room with Rose following quickly on his heels.

"Test results, test results…" he mumbled as they reached the med lab.

Rose had gone from a healthy flush to pale as a sheet of paper in mere seconds, upon first entering the sterile room. The brunette wasn't sure what to expect, much less how to react to whatever had happened or was still happening to her body that made it stay young. Staying young wasn't exactly a bad thing, at least she'd never have to go crazy with worry about getting wrinkles like her mother. Her mother who had consequently celebrated her 49th birthday for seven years in the row, before 'admitting' to be 'fifty'. Her mother who was now dead and buried, a universe away.

Her mother whom she would probably have outlived, anyway. By a long shot, most likely, too.

"So, you ready?" the Doctor asked, concerned as she sat down, unsteady on her feet.

Rose just nodded.

"Alright, here goes," he announced, trying to sound cheery for her sake as he moved the monitor, so she could take a look at a computer simulation of her own genes.

"Ah!" she made, and gave him a pointed look.

She didn't have the first clue about what she was seeing.

"Oh, right!" he exclaimed, smiling sheepishly. "Uhm… well, from what I see, it's…interesting. Yeah, definitely interesting…"

"Doctor, what's happened to me?"

"Well, to put it simply: You're like Jack… almost…"

"I'm immortal?"

"I did say 'almost'. Really, Rose, you have to learn to listen to what I'm saying," he admonished her gently.

"And what are you saying, exactly?" she asked him, because he obviously wasn't getting that she still didn't understand.

"Well, you're not immortal. Or at least, I don't think so. I've made a few test on Jack's blood, too, and it does look slightly different. But you're definitely not the average stereotype of your species anymore," he replied, putting on his specs, and leaning closer to the screen as if trying to get a better look. "Maybe it's more like the Lazarus experiment."

When Rose went even paler at that, the Doctor thought back on what he'd just said, and hurried to correct.

"The Lazarus experiment, but perfected," he stammered. "I would think that it must've happened when you looked into the Time Vortex. The Heart of the TARDIS. In that moment, she looked right back into you, and found out your wish to stay travelling with me, forever. So she acted into your genes, and told them to rejuvenate. Well, not rejuvenate, really, more like to slow down their decay considerably. You see, your cells make clones of themselves, and clones of the clones, and clones of the clones of the clones, and so on. At some point, they get something wrong, just slightly. They degenerate, and that you can see by watching someone age. And the TARDIS, sentimental old girl that she is, made sure to stop it… well, not stop it, but slow it down… She gave you some regeneration energy, you could say, which is capable of 'healing' the degeneration. She can do that, because a TARDIS helps his or her Time Lord to regenerate…Isn't that brilliant?!.. Maybe not so much like the Lazarus experiment, after all, though…"

He grinned broadly at her.

"Does that mean, I'm gonna change? Like you," Rose asked, since she wasn't sure she had understood him properly. Except for the less-aging part. He'd been very clear about that.

"No, it's not enough regeneration energy for that," he explained, serious again, taking of his glasses. "You'll just live for a long, long while. And I would guess that you'll have quite the self-healing capabilities, as well as not getting sick very often."

Now she shared his grin.

"But don't use that as an excuse to walk into danger," the Doctor hastened to admonish her. "You've still only got one life, Rose Tyler… and I couldn't bear to lose you again."

Rose gasped slightly. His voice was so soft, his expression so vulnerable, his eyes so open to all the emotions running through his soul that it made her heart soar as her gaze locked onto his. He was being more open with her, she noted to herself, since he knew that John had told her so much about himself, and thereby about the Doctor. He was trying to be like any other bloke, trying to share his life with her, so that she'd understand that he really wanted them together.

His hand found her cheek, and caressed it gently as he marvelled at this gift the universe- well, multiverse- had given him. Not only was the woman both his hearts loved back in his life again, even if by such tragic events, but this time she might actually stay forever. Or at least for a very long time, although he'd still have to watch out for his Rose. He meant it when he said that she still only had one life. A life he didn't want to see end anytime soon. As he contemplated this, his thumb stroked her cheek, which had flushed a deep crimson again, and his head had dipped precariously. Would she want him to kiss her just yet? Did she need more time? He wondered all this as he slowly leant in, giving her all the time in the TARDIS to pull away from him.

Rose…

**End of chapter 13!**

**A/N: Yeah, what does Rose do? What do you think should I have her doing? Feel free to leave a review with suggestions.**

As for Donna: I've been thinking about it, but I fear that's the one thing I can't do. 'Cause as much as I try, I can't think of a way to bring her back without killing her, and we wouldn't want that. But I promise she won't be forgotten. Maybe she'll even get some cameo appearances. We'll see.


	14. Coming To Terms

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 14: Coming To Terms**

His hand found her cheek, and caressed it gently as he marvelled at this gift the universe- well, multiverse- had given him. Not only was the woman both his hearts loved back in his life again, even if by such tragic events, but this time she might actually stay forever. Or at least for a very long time, although he'd still have to watch out for his Rose. He meant it when he said that she still only had one life. A life he didn't want to see end anytime soon. As he contemplated this, his thumb stroked her cheek, which had flushed a deep crimson again, and his head had dipped precariously. Would she want him to kiss her just yet? Did she need more time? He wondered all this as he slowly leant in, giving her all the time in the TARDIS to pull away from him.

Rose was entranced by his movements, however slight they may have been. She'd never seen him like this. He seemed so very unsure of himself, so unsteady on his own two feet. His gaze was still open, a small flame of nervousness never ceizing to burn behind the adoration at the surface. His mouth, as far as she could see it, was twitching in an uncertain smile, and the hand not holding her cheek had clasped itself onto her waist in an iron grip that probably hurt him more than her. Her eyes dropped to his lips as he drew closer still, perfectly thin, twitching lips that were just about to enclose her mouth.

Unless she stopped it.

She should stop it, right?

She should prevent this from happening, because she'd just lost her husband of ten years. And her second child with that very same husband. A husband, who'd been an identical, if human, clone of the man- alien- who was mere seconds away from kissing her. But it would still be cheating, wouldn't it? Although her husband was, in fact, dead, and would've wanted her to have a fantastic life (he had mentioned thus on many occasions when their Torchwood Team had been facing possibly lethal enemies), so shortly after his non-existent funeral it was still to be considered cheating.

And then the Doctor's lips touched her's, and she was in heaven!

She was an adultress…

Mentally shrugging at that first thought, she concentrated on the feel of the Doctor's kiss. His lips were cold against her warm, human body, but gentle and yielding. Sweet, sweet kiss that was offering his hearts and soul to her as his hands relaxed slowly, and went to encircle her waist. Her own arms slid around his neck by instinct, pressing her body closer to him, and the coolness of his tongue was not unwelcome as it slipped past her lips into her warm orifice.

At this point she backed up, though.

Flushing bright crimson under his heated gaze, she allowed both their panting breaths to fill the room for a few minutes. Apparently having a respiratory bypass system didn't help much when snogging. Rose grinned at this, especially when she could see him all flustered at the lack of application of his superior physiology. A moment later, she found her tongue snaking unbidden out of her mouth to caress the last traces of his taste off her swollen lips. The Doctor seemed to notice this, because a confident smirk spread over his features, and his gaze fell to her mouth again.

Rose's blush only grew.

She could see him contemplating to sweep her up into his arms and pick up where they'd left of not so long ago, kissing her with a passion she had not known was possible before meeting him. That same passion he showed anything else that was of interest to him. As her thoughts painted a very vivid image of what all that care and devotion, all that spirit he put into everything he did, would feel like if it were concentrated on snogging someone senseless, she came to fear that a single woman could possibly never take all of it without fainting.

Just when the brunette was about to say so, the TARDIS engines powered down with a shudder.

"What was that?" she asked instead, frowning.

Where had they gone to, this time?

"Ah…" the Doctor replied, looking guilty. "I know you said you wanted to stay in the vortex to talk, but I thought you'd like to come back here to where everything begun."

"…You mean when you blew up my job?" she asked incredulously.

"Wha- No, no, not that early. Just before… just before I… lost you…" he mumbled, saddened by the memory.

"A Dalek crucible?" she teased, this time. "Where did you find one? I thought they were all gone…"

"No-o!" the Doctor shouted /whined like a five-year old. "Before I… argh! Just go outside, and take a look."

Rose seemed unsure.

"What if there is some sort of monster? I'm not fit enough to run for my life!" she protested, mockingly. "I've just been preg…"

She stopped abruptly. She couldn't say it, the pain was too fresh in her heart. The Doctor, obviously noticing her hesitation, and understanding the reason behind it, stepped up to give her a big comforting hug, before slowly escorting her outside. It was just sundown, Rose realized, as her eyes fell upon the landscape of hundreds of complex rock formations glowing in orange lights. A wale-like cry could be heard above them, as one of the flying stingrays floated over their tiny forms trapped upon the ground.

Her face broke out in a smile.

3333333333333333333333333333

"Finally!" she groaned as she and Mickey heaved the last body onto the truck.

Everybody breathed a sigh of relief. When Martha had suggested the threat of an alien invasion to distract Jack from his pouting-kid-behaviour, she certainly hadn't thought about giant bees terrorizing the whole area between Cardiff and London. They were defeated pretty easily, all you needed was lots and lots of insect spray. What really bothered them was that UNIT, their world's UNIT, and Torchwood had had to work for three entire days to get the bodies out of the way, and the streets free again.

The traffic had been stopped dead for the whole time, and of course the citizens of the United Kingdom had been so wonderfully understanding, and not complained about the trouble at all. Right! Especially when the carcasses had begun to stink twentyfour hours after dieing.

"Ugh, that should be the last of them," their computer expert told her, checking his notepad.

"Good, 'cause I've been awake for five days in a row, without proper nutrition. And…" she said, sniffing in the air. "…we both could use a shower."

"Everyone here could," Gwen cut in, as she joined them. "At least Jack's happy again… well, happier."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that," Mickey retorted with a snort, indicating to the man in question who was just receiving what seemed to be a call of his superiors. Not that he had any. Torchwood was after all, separate from the government, outside the police, beyond the United Nations. Still, whoever was calling, he had Jack give a mock salute towards thin air, and then growl with utter distaste.

"Damn!" the black-haired policewoman cursed. "What now? We just got him civil again!"

"And there someone goes, and destroys our hard work," Ianto clipped in response over their coms.

"Whoever it was, you just wait until I get my hands on them…" Martha threatened. She, like everybody else, was so very tired of hearing every door slam in their boss' wake.

Not a second later, Jack reached them, a scowl on his face that could probably kill a lesser man- or woman.

"What is it?" the three of them asked in unision.

"Conference with…" the rest was a long string of curses that could never be decent to be repeated.

Let it suffice to say that Torchwood Three (including Ianto at the other end of the com) blushed at the profanities…

3333333333333333333

"He knew it was wrong," Rose suddenly spoke up, after they had just stood watching the descend of the sun for a good half an hour. "But he although said that he would've done it again if necessary."

The Doctor knew what she was talking about. The End of the Time War. The real end, hopefully. The death of all things dalek. The genocide his twin had committed. He had done it to save the universe, mind you, but it had still been mass murder. The Doctor sighed. Who was he to judge his twin for his actions, really? He had done the very same thing during the Time War, and then with the Racnoss. Had been about to do it on the Game Station, although he had chosen to be a coward back then, which had led to forcing Rose into doing it.

His Rose… Their Rose.

"I was wrong, too," he admitted. "I wanted to be."

She looked at him strangely.

"I had already formed a plan in my mind. A plan which I thought could give you both, your family and me. A plan that could make you happy…"

"Me staying with John," she whispered hoarsely as she caught onto his meaning.

The Doctor nodded.

"I thought, if I appeared to be cruel to him, left him there because of the way he saved us, you'd find it easier to stay with him and find happiness in both your human existences. I thought, maybe you'd want to stay with him rather than go travelling with such a hypocrite like me," the Time Lord explained, guiltily.

Rose was silent for a long time, then…

"Thank you."

The Doctor turned to her, surprised.

"I would've wished for more, egoistical creature that I am, but those ten years have been wonderful, and I wouldn't have wanted to miss it for the world," she told him, smiling. "But now I'm here, and there really is nowhere I'd rather be- even if my family was around- you silly Time Lord!… The TARDIS is my home."

The Doctor broke out into a mad grin, and went to envelop her in one of his bear hugs, while his ship hummed gently in her mind.

"A home which is talking to me."

That shocked the Doctor, to say the least…

**End of chapter 14!**

**A/N: Well, I hope you liked it. Please, tell me what you think.**


	15. The Stuff Of Legend

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 15: The Stuff Of Legend**

"I thought, if I appeared to be cruel to him, left him there because of the way he saved us, you'd find it easier to stay with him and find happiness in both your human existences. I thought, maybe you'd want to stay with him rather than go travelling with such a hypocrite like me," the Time Lord explained, guiltily.

Rose was silent for a long time, then…

"Thank you."

The Doctor turned to her, surprised.

"I would've wished for more, egoistical creature that I am, but those ten years have been wonderful, and I wouldn't have wanted to miss it for the world," she told him, smiling. "But now I'm here, and there really is nowhere I'd rather be- even if my family was around- you silly Time Lord!… The TARDIS is my home."

The Doctor broke out into a mad grin, and went to envelop her in one of his bear hugs, while his ship hummed gently in her mind.

"A home which is talking to me."

That shocked the Doctor, to say the least…

"Come again?" he asked, not sure whether or not he had heard her right. She couldn't have said what he had heard. It was impossible. Rose may have become slightly psychic through absorbing the Heart of the TARDIS, but it shouldn't be enough to hear the ship's voice, or even feel her consciousness. Impossible!… Then again, he seemed to like that word, had uttered it quite a few times, and been proven wrong.

Not least of all when Rose found her way back from the other universe for the first time…

"The TARDIS, she's communicating with me… like talking, although it's more like transmitting emotion, really," Rose tried to explain as best she could. "What does that mean, Doctor? How is that possible? And why hasn't it happened before? I mean, I know she gets inside your head, and translates everything- or almost- but I never noticed that connection before. And now I'm continously feeling it buzzing in the back of my mind."

The Doctor looked rather dumbstruck.

"Uhm… well, I've… you could be… Actually, I have no idea, Rose," he grinned slightly, madly at her. "Does it bother you?"

Suddenly, his voice was small, and Rose realized that he was really happy about this development, even if he couldn't understand it. It was like he wanted her to share a consciousness with his beloved ship, and thereby with him. Because without him, the TARDIS would be kaput. Their first Christmas together- with this Doctor anyway- had proven thus. Now she seemed to be part of that, too, and he appeared to be afraid that she wouldn't want to.

Afraid of rejection…

Oh, that silly man!

"No!" the brunette answered, smiling. "It's brilliant!"

"It is, isn't it?" he retorted, voice growing strong with the return of his confidence at her acceptance, joy even, at being connected to him so very… intimately. Not that he was able to hear her thoughts, or anything- well, not without actually trying to- but if he opened his mind just a little wider, he noticed now, he could feel her happiness as if it were his own.

'Well, if we're connected like this, and I let it in…I suppose it is mine,' he reasoned.

"Can…Can I try something?" he suddenly blurted out.

Rose cocked her head to the side in curiousity, but nodded, stepping up to him until their bodies were almost touching. The Doctor was unable to surpress the delicious shiver that ran through his body as he relished in the memories of his beautiful companion in nothing but a hoodie and her undergarments. The earlier flush of arousal resurfaced with a vengeance, making him gasp before he could control himself. His breathing came out ragged after this, as he lifted his hands to touch her temples. Rose was obviously very aware of his reaction, since she was smirking like there was no tomorrow, but her crimson blush took the bite of that triumphant gesture.

The blush that spread over her cheeks did not surprise her in any way, considering how her own body reacted, not only to her bold closeness to the Doctor, but to his own reaction as well. The heat did not only rush to her face, and Rose found herself shifting almost uncomfortable on her feet, finding the slight rub of the rough fabric of her jeans against her to be both, relief and torture.

And then suddenly there was a whole new world of emotion.

His fingers gently layed out against her burning skin, she could feel the buzzing in the back of her head surge to whole new levels. It became a strange melody, old and sad, not unlike the songs of the Midnight Garden on board the TARDIS. Infact, it strongly reminded her of that very song, as if they had been copying it, or singing along, because for some reason the young woman was very sure that this was the original.

"What is that?"

"It's called the Music of the Spheres. The sound of the universe," the Doctor answered, smiling slightly.

"Do you hear this all the time?" she wondered.

"Pretty much, yeah…"

Rose grinned.

"No wonder you're as crazy as you are," she mocked.

"OI!" he protested with a grin of himself. "I'll have you know that my state of mind is absolutely satisfactory."

"Yeah, right!" she snorted back.

"In any case, better than a human brain any day- silly little apes that you are!" the Time Lord huffed.

"Oi, you look human enough to me!" Rose reminded him playfully offended. "Apparently, there're some stupid apes in your ancestry, too."

The Doctor's face turned very grave at that, and the brunette feared that she'd actually insulted him now. Fear gripped her heart that he would be angry with her, so very angry he would dump her back on Earth again- although he had said that he could never let her go again. She went to apologize, but was interrupted by the very man she had offended.

"No," he said, tone so very serious that it scared her, his gaze boring deep into her eyes. His hands went to cup her face, thumbs caressing her cheeks lazily, and his body leaned in towards her. He was so close. Close enough for her to feel his breath ghosting over her lips as he spoke. "Just because I share certain phsiological similarities with simiate primates doesn't make me a monkey's uncle, Rose. You descend from apes, I descend from something else. Something else, entirely."

Rose gulped.

And not a moment later, the Doctor's lips crashed with her's. This kiss was passionate, almost furious, and Rose could feel herself drowning in his attention. His tongue slipped passed the barrier of her lips uninvited, and she welcomed it. The cool muscle stroked her flesh, memorizing every inch of her orifice, tasting her as his own taste and scent enveloped her, like his wandering hands, drawing her in a world where nothing existed.

Nothing but them, and this passion that consumed them.

Tearing himself away, panting once more as his respiratory bypass system refused to work, the Doctor latched onto her neck, pulling at the fabric of her hoodie as he tried to get more accsess to greater parts of her skin. Beyond reason, or propriety at this point, Rose helped him by opening the zipper, and shrugging the garment right off her shoulders. A simple pink tanktop- oh, she'd definitely have to go shopping soon- and a not-very-matching red bra- not that the Doctor seemed to care, and at the moment, neither did she- was all she was wearing underneath. His mouth travelled down still, over her hidden breast, giving it a bite through the fabric that made her scream. Then he was lifting her top up, but just enough so that he could plant cool open-mouth kisses onto her skin, and dip his tongue into her belly button repeatedly.

"Doctor," she groaned, but it wasn't what he wanted to hear.

"My name, Rose, please, can you call me by my name," he growled, and begged at the same time.

"Th…"

She stopped.

He stopped.

They looked at each other.

Could she say it? She mused this, while her hands automatically found their way into his hair, mussing it up. His eyes looked up at her pleadingly, but resignation was flooding them in this very moment. He should've known that she was not ready, maybe never would be. It was the name she'd called her husband by, it was probably too much to ask for that she call him that now. And yet he could not help it, could not help but ask her to say his name, to accept him as her… Lifemate.

'Have a fantastic life,' John had told her so often, before they faced the danger.

'You too,' she'd always answered, knowing that she wouldn't be able to live a fantastic life without him. Not in that universe.

And here the universe was giving her a chance to have a fantastic life, after all. She'd be damned if she didn't take it!

"Theta…"

The whisper had barely left her lips, when the Doctor had jumped to his feet again, lowering his mouth onto her's in a gentle caress.

"How long are you gonna stay with me?" the Doctor proceeded to ask, then, smiling.

"Forever," Rose answered, receiving a kiss for each letter of the word- one on her forehead, one on her nose, two on her eyelids, two on her cheeks, and a final one straight on the lips.

Afterwards, the Doctor punched the air.

**End of chapter 15!**

**A/N: I know this chapter was short(the next will be longer, I promise), but aren't they just 'oh, so sweet'? **


	16. Gathering The Children Of Time

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 16: Gathering The Children Of Time (And Shopping)**

They looked at each other.

Could she say it? She mused this, while her hands automatically found their way into his hair, mussing it up. His eyes looked up at her pleadingly, but resignation was flooding them in this very moment. He should've known that she was not ready, maybe never would be. It was the name she'd called her husband by, it was probably too much to ask for that she call him that now. And yet he could not help it, could not help but ask her to say his name, to accept him as her… Lifemate.

'Have a fantastic life,' John had told her so often, before they faced the danger.

'You too,' she'd always answered, knowing that she wouldn't be able to live a fantastic life without him. Not in that universe.

And here the universe was giving her a chance to have a fantastic life, after all. She'd be damned if she didn't take it!

"Theta…"

The whisper had barely left her lips, when the Doctor had jumped to his feet again, lowering his mouth onto her's in a gentle caress.

"How long are you gonna stay with me?" the Doctor proceeded to ask, then, smiling.

"Forever," Rose answered, receiving a kiss for each letter of the word- one on her forehead, one on her nose, two on her eyelids, two on her cheeks, and a final one straight on the lips.

Afterwards, the Doctor punched the air.

"Unfortunately, I have some bad news for you, as well, Doctor," she couldn't help but tease him now.

Her Time Lord whirled around immediately, chocolate brown eyes wide in shock and fear, hands fumbling nervously with his crazy hair, his mouth opened in a silent scream for help. He looked like a five year old, who's been told by his mother that he was to be sent away on a boarding school, or worse, was to be given up for adoption. The Doctor tried to form words, but not a sound would leave his lips out of sheer horror of what his beloved might have to say that was such bad news for him.

"Don't worry, it's nothing serious."

That just meant it was really serious, right?

"I just need abit of time-"

Oh, not again! He thought they'd covered that already!

"-on an civilized planet-"

She didn't want to be alone with him, anymore…

"- preferably Earth-"

Forget what she just said about forever, she wanted to go back home!

"- in female company-"

He sulked.

"- to do some major shopping," Rose topped her catastrophic announcement off with a winning smile.

The Doctor was about to give her some whiny speech about how he couldn't let her go again, when her last words registered in his mind. His mouth fell open in shock once more. This was worse than he had imagined- although how her going shopping could be worse than her leaving him, was a bit fuzzy in it's logic, but still… Shopping?! Dear Rassilon, no! Shopping was bad, shopping was torture. Purposefully invented to drive men nuts, and exploit their weakened state. Any sane specimen of the male gender knew that.

And the Doctor was sane… mostly…

"Uhm," he said, helpfully.

Rose cocked an eyebrow.

"But your clothes still fit you, perfectly, I might add," he tried with compliments.

She smiled. She was having none of that!

"Thank you," Rose replied. "And the jeans are okay, it's the hoodies. I haven't worn any in years! They're just not me anymore, Doctor. Therefore, I need to get some clothes, unless you want me to waltz around the universe, half-naked?"

Yeah, good thing Time Lords did not blush.

Or he would've been quite red, if the rush of heat heading towards his groin was any indication. In her presence, he seemed to be quite unable to control his bodily reactions, which was not healthy for their relationship at this fragile point. He would really have to work on that in the nearest future. Although, maybe in the nearest future, he wouldn't have to control it anymore…

Back to the topic, the thought of seeing Rose half-naked didn't bother him much (quite the opposite infact). But with the continous adventures they had on the various planets that he- or the TARDIS- took them to, it was the thought of all those other people who would see Rose half-naked that ticked him off.

"Okay!" he gave in reluctantly. "Earth it is! But you take Gwen with you. Or Martha. Or both. And if you need someone to carry your bags, drag Mickey-the-idiot along with you. I won't stand for that, it's too-"

"Domestic, I know," Rose smirked.

"Good, 'cause it is too domestic," the Doctor smiled back, as he rushed into his TARDIS with Rose following close behind, so he could fumble with the controls. "Set coordinates for Earth, Wales, Cardiff, the Torchwood hub, 21th… at about…oh, ten o'clock in the morning- that should give you ladies enough time for your girly tradition, while I… well, you'll see."

The brunette looked at him curiously, wondering what her Time Lord was up to, but didn't ask. He wouldn't tell her anyway, so it was pointless to dig, and she supposed he was right. She'd see when the time came. Instead of getting herself frustrated by trying to pry an answer out of him that wouldn't be coming, she went and sat down on the jump seat, watching him dance around the console of his ship. Pushing a button here, flicking a lever there, and sending them on quite the bumpy ride home.

Nothing out of the ordinary, there.

33333333333333333333333333

Giddy.

Torchwood's favorite- and only- Time Lord was giddy, there was no better way to describe it. He had landed the TARDIS exactly on top of the invisible lift like he had last time, proving that he was indeed capable of driving his beloved ship when he wanted to- or maybe the TARDIS was just being nice for once, who knew! Unfortunately, Mickey and Ianto had just been using said lift to get into the hub, and had to make a jump for it when they heard the TARDIS engines or be crushed by the 'Big Blue Box'.

Lucky in the unfortunate moment, they hadn't been very far from the ground, and so they got away with nothing but a few scratches. Mickey grumbled at the apparently insufferable Time Lord, while Ianto just smiled and went to straighten out his suit, taking it all with good british humor, and deciding to 'carry on'. The rest of the Torchwood Three Team had just laughed at them, minus Jack, who hadn't been feeling very happy since the end of the alien invasion.

"Hello!"

That was the only warning any of them got, before they were each engulfed in one of the Doctor's fiercest bear hugs. Jack even got that kiss he'd been craving for ever since he'd set eyes on the New Doctor, although much to his disappointment not on the lips, but on the crown of his head. The good Doctor then moved on to grab hold of Captain Flirt, and whisk him away in a waltz…

"Okay, what's going on?" Gwen asked confused as she watched them.

"Well, the Doctor seems extraordinary happy," Ianto commented. "Therefore, I'd say…"

"They worked it out," Martha gasped, then grinned broadly.

"How long do you think has it been for them?" the former Constable wondered.

"Knowing them, an eternity. They've probably been gone for months, but then again, who knows in the TARDIS," Torchwood's medical doctor retorted, snorting.

"Ha!" Mickey scoffed. "I doubt it took them longer than a few days!"

"Again, with the jealousy issues," Ianto mumbled, but went unheard as Gwen screeched in utter amusement.

"You're on!"

"I'm game, too," Martha butted in.

And so it came that Rose, once she'd put one foot outside the TARDIS, was immediately cornered by two curious females with a myriad of questions. The brunette smiled indulgently at their eagerness, and asked them if they wanted to discuss it while helping her shopping, since she wasn't nineteen anymore, and in dire ned of some clothes. Martha and Gwen exchanged a single look, then grabbed on arm of the third woman each, and dragged her off, out of the hub.

"If you're looking for us, we're shopping!" they informed Jack. "Don't interrupt us, unless you want to face our wrath!"

Captain Flirt, still a prisoner in the Doctor's need to dance- unfortunately, it really was just a dance- could do nothing more than look on as the three girls in the alien buisness disappeared through the door. The second their laughter had ebbed away, the Doctor let go of Jack's one hand, and dragged him over to the phone with the other. Mickey and Ianto followed close behind, sure they wouldn't want to miss this, but the Doctor stopped them with a raised hand.

"Ianto, Mickey-boy, you are going to Gwen's and Martha's apartments, and pack a bag for each of them. Enough for…oh, let's say a week's worth of vacation-"

"Are you kidding?" Mickey protested. "They're gonna kill us if we go through their drawers, especially their underwear… and Gwen is damn good with a gun."

"Blame me, now shift," the Doctor grinned madly.

Mickey looked at Ianto for help, but the man just shrugged.

"Wait, I'll help packing for -is," Jack announced. "Ianto can do whatever you want to be done with the phone, apparently."

With that, he was off.

"And don't forget to pack something for yourselves and Ianto as well!" the Time Lord called after them, before turning to the only remaining member of Torchwood Three left in the hub with him. The mad glint in his eye almost made Ianto flinch. "And we are going to call, and then collect everyone else on this list. And there will be no excuses!"

Beside the phone, Ianto noticed for the first time, lay a piece of paper innocently enough. Oh, but Ianto Jones knew better!

3333333333333333333333333

"How about this one?" Gwen asked from the other side of the shop.

It was a working day, and most other people didn't have time to go shopping, so it was relatively empty, and the almost-shouting didn't disturb anyone. Although, some of the shop girls and boys scoffed a bit at them, obviously believing they were a bunch of housewives who'd nothing better to do than to spent their husbands money. They had been to several places already, getting strange looks wherever they went as they seemed to be buying half the shops- thank god, well, The Lonely God, for psychic credit cards!

Rose took a look at the bright red turtleneck pullover Gwen was showing her. It looked warm and comfy, and the fabric felt soft under her fingertips as she walked over to touch it. She grinned at Gwen, putting it onto the stack she was going to try on. They'd already covered shirts and blouses, and light jackets for the summer, now looking for garments that would keep her warm when they went somewhere cold. Of course, she could always get something out of the TARDIS wardrobe, but the young woman liked to have her own stack of clothes better than to depend on the Doctor's ship, no matter how nice and wonderful the old girl was!

"So, spill!" Martha urged her as she came over with a black and green windbreaker, something normally used if you wanted to go skiing.

"Yeah, what happened after the TARDIS disappeared?" Gwen wanted to know, too.

Rose's grin only grew wider as she motioned for the two women to follow her. She was going to try the articles of clothing on, while she explained everything. That way, she would hardly have to worry about the nosy personnel watching them like the hawks. So, the brunette started to tell her story, only interrupted once in a while by questions and comments on how certain garments fitted her.

"He was so sweet. I don't know how many times I cried, or broke down, or woke up from a nightmare, he was always there somehow. Always taking care of me, just being my friend- or trying very hard. We were floating on the line a few times, but it always worked out in the end. Seems almost like it just does that all the time for us, no matter what happens. He tested my blood, and we found out that I don't really seem to age, because of that time I absorbed the Time Vortex. Like with Margareth of the Slitheen Family- oh, I have to tell you that story sometime- the TARDIS probably went through my thoughts and memories, and found out that I wanted to stay with the Doctor forever, and so she began the process of changing me."

"That's… wonderful," the girls breathed.

"And then we went back to the planet with the flying stingrays, where I first told him I'd stay with him forever. Although, he showed me one of the gardens on board of the TARDIS first, full of singing mini-suns, like the one you and him almost fell into, Martha. You should've heard it, it was beautiful. And I got to eat some gallifreyan food, too. And the TARDIS is actually talking to me, now. Well, sort off…"

"So that wasn't just him, showing off, then?" Martha wondered. "I mean, I know she's alive, and after a while you learn to interpret her moods by her hums, or how the lights flicker, but she never really talked to me. Or Donna, for all I know…The Doctor said that humans weren't telepathic enough, but I was never sure if I should believe him."

"Me neither, but it seems to be true," Rose answered, before emerging in the red turtleneck pullover. "I think I'm keeping this on. It's not exactly cold, but not really warm either, and I just can't see hoodies anymore."

Martha and Gwen chuckled, before going about helping the brunette put the garments away she wouldn't be buying.

333333333333333333333333

When they returned to the hub that afternoon, they found it more lively than ever. Crowded would probably be the best word. Aside from Torchwood Three, Mickey and Jack apologizing profusely for going through their things and blaming the Doctor, who had forced them (Martha and Gwen decided to believe half of it). They could make out Francine, Clive, Tish and Leo Jones, and Tom Milligan of course, as well as Sarah-Jane Smith and her son Luke, and a girl who introduced herself as Maria (K-9 had been left to guard the house). Donna had not been able to make it, for obvious reasons, but Wilfred had come to send them off. Although, send them off to what wasn't really clear, considering a certain Time Lord was missing in this chaos. A chaos, the three women noticed, that consisted not only of all their friends, but also an interesting amount of bags.

Just wait until they got their feminine hands on their Time Lord…

Not a second later the TARDIS doors opened, and everyone turned to see said alien in all his pinstriped glory.

"Alright everyone," he announced to the waiting group, his eyes settling to rest on Rose with such intensity. "You ready? 'Cause it's time."

Everyone looked at him in confusion. Obviously, they didn't know either, why they were summoned.

The Doctor grinned.

"We're going to Barcelona-the planet, not the city!"

**End of chapter 16!**

**A/N: Yay! Barcelona! Will they make it this time? Who knows, but I hope you enjoyed it, and please leave a review!**

Oh, and, by the way, Jenny will definitely be in this story. You'll just have to wait a little bit longer.


	17. The Journey to Barcelona

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 17: The Journey To Barcelona**

When they returned to the hub that afternoon, they found it more lively than ever. Crowded would probably be the best word. Aside from Torchwood Three, Mickey and Jack apologizing profusely for going through their things and blaming the Doctor, who had forced them (Martha and Gwen decided to believe half of it, they could make out Francine, Clive, Tish and Leo Jones, and Tom Milligan of course, as well as Sarah-Jane Smith and her son Luke, and a girl who introduced herself as Maria (K-9 had been left to guard the house). Donna had not been able to maike it, for obvious reasons, but Wilfred had come to send them off. Although, send them off to what wasn't really clear, considering a certain Time Lord was missing in this chaos. A chaos, the three women noticed, that consisted not only of all their friends, but also an interesting amount of bags.

Just wait until they got their feminine hands on their Time Lord…

Not a second later the TARDIS doors opened, and everyone turned to see said alien in all his pinstriped glory.

"Alright everyone," he announced to the waiting group, his eyes settling to rest on Rose with such intensity. "You ready? 'Cause it's time."

Everyone looked at him in confusion. Obviously, they didn't know either, why they were summoned.

The Doctor grinned.

"We're going to Barcelona-the planet, not the city!"

The group just stood there for a moment, some of them wondering if the Doctor had gone mad… well, madder than he was already. A planet named after a famous spanish city? That was too much even for a bunch of people who'd actually met a real-life alien. They all turned around nearly simultaneously to fix their gazes on Captain Jack Harkness, who stood for a few seconds just as dumbstruck as them, before grinning like a fool, and clearing his throat as if to get get everyone's attention.

"Alright people, you heard Pinstripes," he said loudly, earning him a glare from said alien. "Please build a line, and enter the TARDIS in an orderly fashion. Please show the Captain your flight tickets to confirm your authorization to be on board. Enjoy your flight to Barcelona- the planet, not the city- with Time Lord Airways."

Now that a human- even if immortal and from the 51th- had confirmed the existence of their destination, the group looked at each other, shrugged and made a line to get inside of that ridiculously small-looking box. Martha, Gwen and Rose still stood rather shell-shocked, while they watched the Doctor open the TARDIS doors wide, and step aside to let everyone in.

"Oh, and please keep your hands to yourselves," Jack reminded them. "We don't want to end up in the middleages, do we?"

Horrified looks crossed their friends' expressions, and everyone suddenly held their belongings so much tighter to their bodies.

"Yeah, and don't wander off!" the Doctor additionally informed them. "Stay in the first room you enter, and please don't wander around. You might get lost, and last time someone got lost I had to look for them for a week."

The group gulped, and nodded hurriedly.

"Looks like they're rethinking taking a trip with you in your spaceship," Rose teased as she finally mde her way down to him.

"Well, too bad, 'cause there's no excuse not to come, unless you absolutely hate me. And let's be serious, who could hate me?" he asked with his 'look, I'm adorable' pout.

"You mean besides a crucible full of Daleks?" Martha asked.

"Or a Queen of the United Kingdom, who actually banished you from ever returning?" Gwen suggested.

"Oh, technically it's been two Queens: Queen Elizabeth I didn't like him either," the former policewoman was immediately informed by her only other female colleague at Torchwood Three.

"Still don't know why…" the Doctor mumbled, tugging at his ear in thought.

"With the track of chaos you leave behind for others to clean up I'm not surprised," Jack laughed at his face, receiving another glare. "Aw, well, look at the bright side. Our Queen currently likes you."

"I saved her life, and this planet from a radioactive Titanic, she'd be a bit hard-pressed not to like me."

"We saved Queen Victoria, too," Rose reminded him. "Didn't stop her from hating our guts."

"But," the Doctor protested cheekily. "She knighted us."

"And then she went and founded Torchwood," Rose retorted, before turning around to Jack. "No offence."

"None taken. I didn't like the old Torchwood much either," Captain Flirt replied, looking over at a blushing Gwen suggestively.

"Uhm… I hate to interrupt, but everyone else is on board already," Wilfred chimed in. "They're waiting for you, I'd say."

The five of them turned around to see a large bunch of humans walking around the central column in the console in astonishment, and a rather annoyed looking Mickey Smith tapping his food by the TARDIS entrance. The four humans, and one Time Lord grinned innocently over at the dark-skinned man, and turned to say goodbye to Wilfred. The Doctor asked if he really didn't want to come with them, but Wilfred turned him down once more, stating that he couldn't just leave Sylvia and Donna alone, even if the Doctor really did land mere seconds after he left.

"Besides, this heart is too old to experience a new planet," he smiled at the alien.

"Ha! Too old, please! Try over 900 years, Wilfred, that's old," the Doctor laughed.

"But you don't look it," the older-looking man protested. "And by the looks of it, you don't feel it, either."

At this, he threw a side-long glance at Rose.

Again, good thing Time Lords didn't blush. Still, his tell-tale sign made an appearance as he could be seen 'massaged' his earlobe.

"Don't worry, though. I won't forget you," Wilfred informed the Doctor. "I'll look up at the stars for you, and think of the adventure you're having."

"Oh, no!" Rose told him, sternly. "No adventure, just a nice little holiday. This time, at least."

The Doctor smiled, shook Wilfred's hand once more, and turned to join the others as they entered the TARDIS- Martha, Gwen having handed Rose's shopping bags over to Jack and Mickey in retribution for going through their things. Said brunette dropped another handful of bags in the Doctor's surprised arms with a twinkle in her eye, and a smile on her lips, for inciting the other two. Shaking his head, the pinstriped alien took his fate like a man, and moved into the TARDIS. Setting down the bags, he closed the doors, and made his way over to the central column. A happy hum vibrated through the ship. Giving Torchwood Three, minus Mickey-the-idiot, and Rose some instructions on which button to push, and which lever to pull, he guided them into the vortex.

"Alright," he shouted then happily, getting everyone's attention. "Welcome on board of my TARDIS, which stands for Time And Relative Dimension In Space. Now, first things first, this old girl is alive. And sentient. Which means that you better treat her right for the duration of our little trip, or she'll get her revenge, and I can guarantee you that it isn't nice. I'm talking out of experience here."

"You shouldn't have hit her with that mallet all the time," Rose muttered, loud enough so everyone could hear, and chuckle at the notion.

"Yeah, well, anyway. Those who've been here already- which would be Captain Jack, Martha, Sarah-Jane, and my lovely Rose-"

"Chrm."

"Oh, yeah, and Mickey-the-idiot-"

"Watch it, boss!"

"Anyway, those who've been here already, you know where your rooms are, please take your families, friends, and fiancés with you. The TARDIS should have your rooms ready. Don't bother unpacking, though, as we'll be there in a few hours at most, and then you're gonna need your bags when we check into the hotel."

"Hotel?" Tish Jones asked curiously.

"Yeah, a hotel. What, did you think that on a whole planet there wasn't even one hotel?" the Doctor asked surprised.

"No, but…we don't have any money, or at least not their currency, right?"

"No, you don't. They use credits, but don't worry. It's my treat," the Doctor smiled merrily at them as he pulled out something that looked like a metallic stick out of one of his many pockets.

"Oh, alright," Martha's sister conceded, flushing with embarrassment.

"Aside from that, please remember not to wander off. You may explore the ship, but better not on your own. And keep your mobiles with you at all times, so we can find you. If you need to find your way back, or are looking for something specific, just ask the TARDIS- nicely- and she'll show you the way. She's a bit off a mother hen, so don't worry, she'll take good care of yo- ouch!"

"What is it, what happened?" Gwen asked as the Doctor jumped back from the console.

"I meant it as a compliment!" the Doctor pouted, glaring at the ceiling, and not even taking notice of Gwen's concern. "There's nothing wrong with being a mother hen, and there's definitely no need to shock me. That hurts, you know!"

A low rumble went through the ship, which sounded suspiciously like a sigh.

"Alright," Rose took over. "When you're ready, you can come to the kitchen, if you want. I'll put a kettle on."

The console room was quickly left empty as Jack, Martha, Sarah-Jane, and Mickey took to their roles as former companions of the Doctor, and led everyone to the dormitories, leaving only Rose and the Doctor. The latter quickly sent a last admonition to Francine Jones about a 'no slapping defenseless Time Lords' on board, to which the older woman just laughed, and Martha shook her head. Feeling slightly sorry for her alien, seeing as she remembered that story from one of her's and John's walks, she quietly enveloped him in a short but tight hug, before tugging on his hand, and dragging him to the kitchen. The two of them worked quickly to put together a couple of different tea bags, so that everyone may chose what flavour they'd like, until one flavour in particular caught Rose's attention.

"Venusian Chocolate?" she read out loud.

"Oh, yeah, it was so good, they made a tea out of it, too."

"Do you have some? The real thing, I mean?"

"Uhm…yeah, should be right…" he murmured as he climbed onto the counter to reach the higher shelves. Rose watched with growing anticipation, if not horror, how an unsteady Doctor rummaged through the cupboards.

It ended in a crash, obviously…

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The first thing everyone noticed was that Barcelona- the planet, not the city- had the same rather warm climate as Barcelona- the city, not the planet. Infact, the moment they put a food outside, where the Doctor was already rambling on about the planet's history and specialties- "Dogs with no noses, isn't that great?!"- the group of humans scrambled back inside, and back to their rooms to relieve themselves of unnecessary layers of clothing. Once they came out again, their designated driver was pouting like a five-year old, because, again, no one had paid attention to what he was saying. He was about to repeat the whole ramble, when a delighted screech from Luke's apparent girlfriend interrupted him.

"Oh, aren't you a cutie!"

"Why, thank you, young lady," the Doctor responded, not lacking his smug grin, but noticed soon enough that, just like Rose during the 2012 Olympics, Maria hadn't meant him. In this case, it was a small pug with no nose that held everybody's interest over the Last of the Time Lords. The Doctor seemed to quickly recover from this latest blow, though. "Ah… Yeah, they are quite brilliant, aren't they?"

"It really doesn't have a nose!" Leo commented as he watched Maria scratch the pug's belly.

"How do they smell anything?" Mickey wondered aloud.

"Through their ears," the Doctor said in all seriousness, although if that meant that he was actually being serious or just joshing them, they did not know.

"So, Doc-"

"Don't call me Doc, Captain Flirt."

"Don't call me Captain Flirt, Pinstripes."

"Don't call me-"

"Enough, from the both of you!" Francine growled. "Or I will slap you!"

The two men gulped, while their little group just laughed.

"Good thing, we've got you with us, Mrs. Jones," Rose said, grinning. "Give him a whole Dalek army, and some million Cybermen to boot, no problem. But face him with an angry mother, and he'll cower in fear."

"Yeah, it's a bit ridiculous, Doctor," Tom agreed, while Francine told Rose to call her by her name.

"You've never been slapped by a mother, then," the Doctor shuddered.

"He never gave me a reason to slap him," Francine said dryly.

"I didn't either, unless saving your daughter's life is a reason for you to slap me. And in that case, you should've slapped him as well. He saved Martha's life once, too- well, at least he tried. During the year that never was…"

"…"

"My mother, in any case, had a reason to slap you, Doctor. You brought me home a year too late," Rose butted in. "And Mickey had been taken in for questioning, because he had supposedly murdered me."

"Well, yeah… I'll admit, I was a bit…late…"

"You call twelve months a bit, Doctor?" Sarah-Jane asked. "If that had been my daughter, I would've slapped you, too."

The Doctor stood there, shifting on his feet uncomfortably, Barcelona's late afternoon sun glaring down at them mercilessly as they all stood infront of a fountain in the middle of something that looked like a garden. The Last of the Time Lords quickly suggested to check in as he had purposefully landed them in the hotel's park. The group took in their surroundings for the first time, then. All around them were exotic plants, and flowers, everything was green, and yellow, and pink, and red. A myriad of scnets flooded their nose, some soft, some strong, but always pleasant. In the distance, they could make out the walls of a building, apparently made out of some reddish stone. To avoid further arguments, the Doctor led them to the reception hall hastily. Contrary to the rather rustical outside, the inside of the hotel was all alien tech and progress. There was even a hologram handling the check-ins at the reception desk.

"Welcome to New Catalonia Inn, how may I help you?" the bluish hologram asked.

"We require…uhm, let's see… that would be Sarah-Jane, Luke, Maria… Francine and Clive can share, unless something happened I should be aware of… so can Martha and Tom…Leo, Tish…then there's Jack, Gwen, Ianto, Mickey-the-idiot… Rose and me… So, that makes…thirteen. We'd like thirteen of your finest rooms, please," the Doctor answered after a few moments.

"Floor Six: The west wing is free," the hologram suggested.

"Really? A whole wing, only for us?" Clive asked, rather baffled.

"That would be great, thanks."

"My pleasure, sir. I'll need your name, sir."

"Oh…uhm… Smi…McCrimmon, Doctor James McCrimmon," he said, thinking better of using is typical alias.

"Welcome to Barcelona, Doctor McCrimmon," the hologram smiled, then waited for thirteen chip cards to float down to eye-level, before continuing. "Here are your room cards, sir. If you need anything else, a personal holo-butler will be happy to get you anything you like. We hope you enjoy your stay."

"Thank you," the Doctor replied, grabbing the keys, and leading them onto a silvery circle embedded in the ground. "To Floor Six, please!"

A small whizzing sound, and then the circle was lifting them into the air.

**End of chapter 17!**

**A/N: Well, they finally made it to Barcelona! About time, too. The Doctor and Rose have been trying to get there before... Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, and please leave a review to tell me what you think.  
Jenny's entrance is approaching... 'insert ominous voice'**


	18. Whispers In The Night

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 18: Whispers In The Night**

"Floor Six: The west wing is free," the hologram suggested.

"Really? A whole wing, only for us?" Clive asked, rather baffled.

"That would be great, thanks."

"My pleasure, sir. I'll need your name, sir."

"Oh…uhm… Smi…McCrimmon, Doctor James McCrimmon," he said, thinking better of using is typical alias.

"Welcome to Barcelona, Doctor McCrimmon," the hologram smiled, then waited for thirteen chip cards to float down to eye-level, before continuing. "Here are your room cards, sir. If you need anything else, a personal holo-butler will be happy to get you anything you like. We hope you enjoy your stay."

"Thank you," the Doctor replied, grabbing the keys, and leading them onto a silvery circle embedded in the ground. "To Floor Six, please!"

A small whizzing sound, and then the circle was lifting them into the air. Startled gasps went through the group; they hadn't been expecting this, but caught themselves quickly, and marvelled at the sheer beauty of it all. Holograms and drones were whizzing aroung, doting on the quests, providing tourist information, or simply wishing everyone a nice stay. A little metal ball rushed past them, balancing a tray with a bottle of wine and two glasses on it's head, and if it weren't for it's similarity to the Master's Toclafane, it would have been a very cute sight to see.

"Remind me, not to call the room service…" Leo murmured with a shudder.

Martha just nodded, chancing a glance at the Doctor. The Time Lord's jaw was tight, but other than that she couldn't make out any change in his mood. The circle came to a screeching halt, and the Doctor ushered them off the platform. They formed a small circle, and watched on as the Doctor touched a small button on one of the keycards to get the specifics of the room, which's door it opened. He studied the small holograpfic monitor for a moment, before nodding to himself.

"Alright, number 615, this is a double. Mr. and Mrs. Jones," he called, and handed Francine the card as she came forth. "Just hold it against the designated area, and it'll open the door. Hold it against it once more, and the door is locked. The safe workes with your retina, fingerprint, and voice identification. Oh, and you'll need a password, too."

She nodded once, before going back to stand beside her husband.

"Room 616, single, Jack. Room 617, right opposite to your parents, Martha. Room 618…" the alien went on, handing everyone a cardkey, until there were only him and Rose left to need one. "Rooms 611 and 613. Which one would you like?"

"I'll take 611, please. 13 is bad luck," Rose laughed.

"Since when have you gone american? Besides, this isn't even the thirteenth floor," the Doctor mocked.

"With you, I've just learned to be extra careful," she answered, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Oh, now that's rude!" he protested. "I'm supposed to be the rude one, here. Rude and not ginger, remember?"

"You haven't got exclusives to it, though."

"What's wrong with beinh brown-haired?" Luke asked curiously, then quickly became embarrassed as everyone turned to look at him. "Sir?"

"Nothing's wrong with it," the Doctor conceded. "I just wanted to be ginger for once. I have never been ginger, in none of my ten bodies so far."

He pouted.

"Ten bodies?" Maria asked, dumbstruck.

Sarah-Jane chuckled.

"Come on, love," she said. "I'll explain it for you, once we're settled in. It's almost dinner time, anyway."

"Oh, right. So, let's meet here in… say… half an hour, yeah?" Jack took the lead at that cue. "That's enough time for everybody to unpack, mostly. Right?"

No one protested, and so it was decided. Everyone went, looking for their rooms- not that it was very difficult what with the numbers hanging over each door like heavy golden ornaments. Still, Rose was rather grateful that she had the Doctor to walk her to her door like a proper gentleman. It gave her an excuse to cling to his offered arm. Not that she needed an excuse, since everyone knew about them, but her alien hadn't been too wrong to call her a 'timorous beastie' in 1879. Once they reached her door, she let go of the Doctor's arm, and he stepped out of the way, so she could get inside. Before the door opened, though, she felt him take another step towards her, until her back was pressed against his front, and his breath ghosted over her cheek, and his lips all but brushed her earlobe. He gently kissed the spot just underneath her ear, before his sensuous voice washed over her in a whisper.

"There's always a dance during dinner time in this hotel, and I want to dance with you."

The brunette shuddered at all the other possible implications of that sentence, knowing full well what 'dancing' meant to a Time Lord- or maybe it was just him, who knew! Rose was about to let her head fall back, hoping to capture his lips, and forget the damn dinner, when her alien drew back suddenly. When she turned around, all she saw was the door beside her own closing in a rush. Quite shaken, the young woman just stood there for a few minutes, until Ianto, who had just found out he had the room opposite to her, noticed and asked if anything was wrong. She shook her head in negative, and finally entered her quarters for the next week, although who knew how many nights she'd sleep there if the Doctor's actions where any indication of his intentions. She would probably not sleep much in either of their rooms. She was soon ripped from her thoughts, seeing as just as she shut the door behind her, a man appeared in her room.

Well, not a man, really, just the image of one.

The holo-butler, as Rose guessed, was the perfect picture of the cliché girls like her had always giggled about. An older man in black tie, bowing low infront of their master- her, in this case- with a tray in one white-gloved hand, and the other resting firmly behind his back.

"Welcome to Suite 611 of the New Catalonia Inn, Madam," he spoke in a nasal tone that conveyed both, arrogance and respect. Just like she'd always imagined a butler like him would speak. Well, not like him, a real one, a living one. "If you require anything, I shall be glad to assist you in any way."

"Uhm…"

"Yes, Madam?" the butler asked.

This one could actually hear her… Wow…

"A computer analyzes the audio data from the room," the hologram explained unbidden.

"Oh, okay," Rose replied, unsure. "But I…uhm, I really don't need anything right now, so… you can…dunno…just go…"

The holo-butler made another bow, and disappeared, but now before telling her to call if she needed anything. Rose frowned a bit, she wasn't sure whether she liked or disliked this hologram. She had been amazed when the receptionist- hologram, or whatever it was called, had told them about the holo-butlers, but after meeting this one, this rude old man, she wasn't so sure anymore.

_'I just hope that the other ones have more luck with their room assistance,'_ Rose thought as she lifted her suitcase onto the bed in order to unpack her belongings.

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"Welcome to Suite 613 of the New Catalonia Inn, Sir," a soft female voice informed the Doctor just as he entered. "If you require anything…"

"I'll tell you, no worries," the Last of the Time Lords grinned. "Thanks."

"Not a problem, sir," the hologram replied with a cheeky smile, before disappearing.

The Doctor's grin grew. Psychic holo-butlers. He bloody loved this place! Heat rose to his cheeks as he remembered the holo-butler's pretty brunette hair, and coral rimmed eyes, and how her tongue poked out from between her teeth when she smiled. The main computer had asserted his holo-butler after what the Doctor liked most about his Rose, and if said girl knew… Another broad grin etched itself onto his features as he thought about the cute little blush that would tinge her face crimson.

"Rose…" he sighed.

He looked around the room for something to do. Since he didn't have much luggage, he wouldn't even need ten minutes to settle in, and they had agreed on half an hour. Just as he emptied the last bits out of his various pockets, he noticed the little marble table in the corner. It was a perfect square, and the Doctor quickly recognized the odd pattern on the surface to be a chess board. With a cry of joy and a jolt, he made his way over to it, hurriedly sitting down, rubbing his hands together with glee.

"Need me, sir?" the Rose-butler reappeared.

"Oh…uhm…Play with me?" the Time Lord asked shyly, as if he was speaking to the real Rose.

"With pleasure."

Of course, it quickly became apparent that this hologram was in no way the real Rose, as the real Rose, for all her brilliance, wouldn't be able to hold her own against him in this game of chess like the hologram did. Obviously, the only reason the Rose-butler was a fair match for him was, because she was a psychic hologram, and she took full advantage of that. Basically, he was playing against himself.

"You're quite good at this, sir," the hologram complimented. "Usually, the main computer needs to dumb down for a fair match, but with you, it's almost overworking itself."

"Ha! The computer that beats a mind like mine has still to be created," the Doctor replied smugly. "And please, don't call me 'sir'. Just Doctor."

"Alright then, Doctor, show me your moves…" the Rose-butler teased.

"Oh, I will. Don't worry, I will…Rose…"

33333333333333333333

"I can't believe you're actually in black tie…" Rose laughed at him.

"Me neither," Martha admitted, analyzing the room with a worried gaze. "Last time, it was a catastrophe."

The Doctor pouted as he heard their first comments on his tuxedo.

Dinner was lovely, not least of all, because they served mainly real Earth dishes. When Maria admitted to have expected green slime, and unpronounceable titles for each dish, it earned a good-hearted laugh from both the Doctor and Jack. Everyone else couldn't contain their giggles either, even the girl herself chuckled. The conversation went onwards as numerous tales of the heroic adventures of Torchwood Three- and Mickey in particular, as he was the narrator- were told, limbs flying around in wild gestures, until said idiot landed with his rump on the floor, and everyone errupted into laughter again.

"Not funny," the dark-skinned man said, grouchily.

"Course not," Leo stated with a smirk.

"At least not as funny as that one time, when that Weevil sprang atop his desk, and demolished everything," Gwen spoke up. "Mickey had just been working on the footage off CCTV to cover out tracks, when it happened. He jumped up, and fell on the floor with a scream."

"A scream?" Jack mocked. "That was a shriek, that was. Like a little girl."

"Not true."

"Ten, maybe eleven years old, just faced with a scary story," Martha clipped.

The Doctor smirked, mumbling something about 'pigtailes'.

"We were laughing so hard, we couldn't move to catch the Weevil for a good five minutes," Ianto said with a serious air around him. "It almost got out of the hub."

"Was that when your voice identification software got destroyed along with your computers?" Rose asked.

"Yeah, after we got new computers, we had to install everything again," Mickey jumped at the chance to change the subject. "Still waiting for that particular programm, though."

Next up were Sarah-Jane, Luke and Maria to talk about some of the alien-associated happenings on Earth. The Jones Family felt a bit inadequate among all these adventurers, but their eldest daughter laughingly assured them that a bit of normal life would help keep them sane. Even the Doctor admitted that 'domestic tales' could be quite entertaining. Rose smacked him up the back of his head for his rudeness.

He pouted at her, until her heart melted. Then he grinned maniacally at her, grabbed her hand, and yanked her up to her feet.

"I promised you a dance, if I remember well."

Without further ado, he dragged her onto the floor, closely followed by a cackling Captain Jack Harkness, who was practically carrying his dance partner- a shell-shocked Gwen- into the middle of the room. Laughing gently, Clive and Francine joined them, as did Tom and Martha, and after a moment Ianto escorted his colleague's sister Tish out into the hall. Leo looked on for a second, before politely asking Sarah-Jane if she would do him the honor. That left Mickey to babysit the two kids, because Luke was too shy to ask his 'girlfriend' for a dance.

"Cute, aren't they?" Rose asked after witnessing the whole thing.

The alien in question just shrugged.

"Our friends are having fun, that's all that matters," the Doctor said, taking her hand in his, and sliding his other arm around her waist. He pulled her close towards him, until their bodies touched, clothes swishing, the heat of her skin, and the coolness of his gallifreyan phisiology colliding in their dance. "And the youth will figure it out someday."

"Like us?"

"Hopefully not, or they'll waste a monumental amount of precious time," her Time Lord chuckled.

"And he'd leave her on a parallel Earth," Rose reminded him.

The Doctor groaned and ducked his head.

"You'll never let me live that down, right?"

"Hmm…no." She gave him a playful smile. "But I love you anyway."

"I love you too."

"What?"

Shocked, Rose drew away from him, not sure if she'd heard him right. Or maybe it had been just Tom whispering those sweet little words into Martha's ear, while they were dancing so very close to them. The young woman looked up at his face, uncertain and afraid that she'd misunderstood him. His chocolate gaze locked with her's, drawing her in, a soft smile gracing his lips as he pulled her closer still, head dipping once more until their mouths just barely touched.

"You heard me," he murmured against her lips.

"Say it again," she pleaded, desperate in the rush of anticipation.

"Rose Tyler, I love you."

**End of chapter 18!**

**A/N: I am evil! Muhahahahaha! I shall leave you now to ponder how Rose should react to this unexpected confession. Please leave a review.**


	19. The Curse Of Black Tie

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 19: The Curse Of Black Tie**

"And he'd leave her on a parallel Earth," Rose reminded him.

The Doctor groaned and ducked his head.

"You'll never let me live that down, right?"

"Hmm…no." She gave him a playful smile. "But I love you anyway."

"I love you too."

"What?"

Shocked, Rose drew away from him, not sure if she'd heard him right. Or maybe it had been just Tom whispering those sweet little words into Martha's ear, while they were dancing so very close to them. The young woman looked up at his face, uncertain and afraid that she'd misunderstood him. His chocolate gaze locked with her's, drawing her in, a soft smile gracing his lips as he pulled her closer still, head dipping once more until their mouths just barely touched.

"You heard me," he murmured against her lips.

"Say it again," she pleaded, desperate in the rush of anticipation.

"Rose Tyler, I love you."

He could see her close her eyes to savour the sound of his voice, and the delicious feelings those last three words rose within her. Her lips quirked upwards into a tender smile, and, for a moment, her face was completely relaxed. Of course, his luck couldn't possibly hold out very long as he found her soon frowning every so slightly, worrying her lips. A stray tear slipped down her cheek, which he chose to kiss away, but his mind immediately settled on what was spoiling his beloved's happiness.

""I'm sorry," he whispered sadly.

Rose's eyes snapped open.

"No!" she replied decisively. "Don't say that! Don't ever be sorry for telling me you love me."

"But it made you sad," the Doctor protested, guilt lacing his voice.

"But it also made me happy, so very, very happy, Doctor," she smiled shyly up at him.

"Yeah?" he grinned.

"Yes."

The Last of the Time Lords breathed a sigh of relief at that. She wasn't angry with him, didn't resent him for reminding her of what she'd lost not so long ago, when, really, he'd been trying to do the opposite for a while now. He had wanted to cheer her up, and what better way, he'd thought, than finally visiting a place with dogs with no noses. It was just funny, you couldn't evade the bubbly feeling of your upcoming laughter when you even just thought about it. And they never had made it to Barcelona after the Game Station.

"Doctor?" her voice broke him out of his reverie.

"Hmm?"

"Why?"

He looked at her, confused.

"Why are we all here? I mean, yeah, it's a great place, and I really like everyone, but why are we all here?" Rose wondered.

"Oh, well… We never made it to Barcelona when we tried on our own, so I thought, if we brought others, we might finally land on the right planet. In the right time, too," the Doctor hastened to answer.

"That's not the real reason, is it?" she asked sceptically.

"Again with the rudeness," he pouted. "Of course it's the real reason… not the only reason, but still very much real…"

She gave him a pointed look.

"Well, I wanted to cheer you up a bit," he admitted. "You've lost so much in such a short time, and you were so sad… I wanted to show you what you've got. What's still there, and hopefully will be there for a long time. I wanted to show you that you're not alone, that you've got a whole bunch of people who care about you, people who are like family to me, and- in time- will become so to you as well, I hope. I wanted to demonstrate that you've got more than me in the universe, and that, should you ever want to leave me- which I hope will never happen- there will always be someone to take care of you. To catch you when you fall…"

He murmured his words, his breath ghosting over her brunette hair as she had stopped looking at him some time ag. Instead burrying her face in his chest (more precisely, in the triangular space where his plain white shirt could be seen under his tuxedo jacket). He caught her quiet sobs, and smelled her tears. His arms tightened their embrace around her body as he continued to slowly sway them on the dance floor, their conversation unnoticed in between dozens of other couples. Her arms automatically wrapped around his neck as she clung to him for support and comfort…

And love.

He looked for Jack, who was dancing with Gwen a few feet away, and seemed to be the only one seeing the change in the young woman the Doctor was holding to his body fiercely, and locked gazes with the immortal. A silent conversation passed between the two men, before Jack nodded. The Doctor smiled slightly at him, then sidestepped to lead his lady friend out of the hall.

3333333333333333333333

(a little while later, with everyone back at the table)

"Do you think they'll make a move?" Tom asked the little group.

Everyone threw each other glances, not sure what to say to that. Of course, they'd love for the two of them to finally find happiness, even the Jones Family, who barely knew them, wished the Doctor and Rose to get their act together. Unfortunately, over the past this has always proven to be quite difficult, either because neither would say anything, or because they'd lose each other, or because- and Torchwood growled at the thought- the Doctor would leave her behind, if only for her own good.

"Normally, I'd say 'no', but since I st-borrowed Rose's key card, they won't have much choice… I hope," Jack smiled deviously.

The group laughed- with one exception.

"Don't you think he's a bit old for her?" Mickey asked darkly. "He's 900 years old, after all."

"Probably older, and just vain," Martha snorted. "I distinctly remember him stating on one of his visits that he's celebrated his 1000th birthday in his…what, fifth body?"

"That's my point."

"You're just jealous," Gwen muttered.

"What?" Mickey defended himself. "That's one hell of an agegap."

"So, because of his age he's not allowed to love…or be loved?" Sarah-Jane asked sternly.

"I'm just pointing out the obvious. I mean, doesn't that make him a dirty old man, somehow?"

"Well, Francine, you're the mother here- not Rose's mother- but you once thought that he was dating Martha. You decide," Jack redirected the question.

The older woman though about it for a moment.

"Well, yes, he is a lot older than Rose ("See!"), but that's a given when you consider that he's an alien with more lifes. And if you take just this body, he's what? 15 years old? That would make Rose the craddle-robber. And he looks like he's in his mid-thirties, while Rose is maybe 12 years younger-looking. That's not so much."

"And he doesn't act 900 either," Clive interjected.

"Yeah, he got the attitude of a five-year-old most of the time," Ianto laughed.

"Besides, have you seen how he looks at her?" Tish asked the table. "That's puppy love in his eyes, I'd say. He's completely infatuated with her. He adores her, I'm actually surprised he doesn't kiss the ground she walks on."

"That would be very un-time-lord-y," Jack explained to everyone's amusement.

"And what about that?!" Mickey almost shouted. "He's not even human, he's a completely different species, and, let's be honest, what do we know about the Time Lords?"

"Mickey, to him, we're the aliens," Leo reminded him. "But he doesn't care, he's nice to everyone."

"Besides, if we'd go by races than we'd be no better than the nazis!" Maria spoke up for the first time, glowering at the man.

Mickey looked from one face to another, finding no sympathy in any of them, and stood to leave the table.

333333333333333333333333333333

(meanwhile, with the Doctor and Rose)

They quietly made their way to her room when Rose realized that she'd forgotten her keycard on the dinner table.

"No worries, I'm sure Luke will notice, and keep an eye on it," he soothed her. "He seems to be a smart boy, and he always got Maria to give him a head of steam."

She chuckled weakly as he moved them into his own suite.

"Good thing I packed an extra pair of pajamas, even though I barely sleep at all," the Doctor commented as he rummaged through the few contents of his wardrobe.

Of course, the Rose-butler had to go and ruin it.

"Good evening, si…Doctor," she said as she appeared, then noticed Rose. The two of them stared at each other for a few minutes, with the Doctor shifting uncomfortably in his spot between the two, if slightly to the side.

"How come you get a pretty lady as a holo-butler, and I get an old- not to mention arrogant- geezer? How is that fair?" Rose asked dryly.

"Uhm…oh. They're psychic holo-butlers. They adapt to your imagination."

At her quirked eyebrow he wished that he hadn't said anything.

"Imagine me often, Doctor?" Rose asked teasingly.

"Uhm…" he tried to explain, but nothing came to mind, so he did the first thing that did to distract her. He strode over to her smirking form, flinging the pajamas to the other side of the room in his haste, and locking his lips against her in a powerful kiss. A moan left someone's throat, whether it was her's or his, he was not sure, but it spoke clearly of the almost feral passion they shared. Neither noticed the Rose-butler smile knowingly, and vanish into thin air, giving them some privacy. Not that either of them even remembered there had been a holo-butler in the room! When they finally broke for air, they looked both thoroughly snogged what with their hair in complete diarray, glazed over eyes and swollen lips. Rose's face was flushed, and they were both panting as they continued to exchange shorter, sweeter kisses every few seconds.

As if they couldn't bear to be apart, not to touch each other…

"Doctor?" Rose finally spoke up to get his attention.

"Hmm?" he hummed into her mouth during their…who knows which kiss!

"Can we… can we not…" she began, before failing, and gesturing wildly towards the kingsized bed.

Okay, so Time Lords did blush…a little…

"Oh…oh! No, no, no, no, no! I didn't mean to… not that I wouldn't want to, one day… but not… it would be too soon now… to early in our…uh…relationship… that'd be bad; not that you'd be bad, I'm sure, you'd be very good…uhm… but not… I mean, I wouldn't want… not that I wouldn't like to…when, if…when you want to… if you ever… but not…tonight, no…that's too… it'd be sort of wrong, wouldn't it… too soon… we should take our time before… slow steps, right? Slow… yeah…" he stammered on and on, a smiling Rose deciding only after endless minutes to release him from his embarrassment by giving him another heartfelt snog.

"Thanks, Doctor."

"My pleasure," he grinned. "Uhm Rose?"

"Hmm?"

"Would… you…I mean, could I…h-hold you…through the night?"

She smiled.

"I'd love you to."

33333333333333333333333333

(the morning after)

They went to the zoo, the next day. Each taking a map, so they could find their way if they got separated, or someone wanted to investigate something on his or her own, the Doctor explained to them how it was divided into sections named after the planets, the animals originated from. Furthermore, he told them that they could probably spend days in there as the Barcelonian Zoo was huge, 'as big as a small country, in fact' he put it, so he suggested going to sections other than 'Earth', since they could see that every day without travelling half a galaxy and a good thousand years.

"Alright then, allons-y!" he shouted, grabbing Rose's hand and practically dragging her off with him so fast, the others had trouble following.

At first, the little group had been a bit reluctant to go to a zoo, as they considered it a place you took small kids infatuated with 'furly' animals, but after seeing 'mermaids', unicorns and phoenixes they revised their earlier judgement, and their enthusiasm grew tenfold. Rose was especially fascinated by the phoenixes as the Doctor had mentioned them before. He'd been right, they were beautiful. Even his description, while correct, could no measure up to their actual appearance. And their singing…

"They're wonderful, Doctor," she whispered, moved by the display infront of her, as she looked up at him. His face was pale and serious, which worried her. "Doctor?"

"Let's gather the others. We need to get everyone out of here, and fast!"

Rose sighed.

_'The curse of the black tie,'_ she thought. _'Or maybe it's just the Doctor.'_

**End of chapter 19!**

**A/N: Aren't they just sweet? Only a few more chapters to go, I'd say.**

**As for Mickey: No, I don't think he's a bad person (or a racist) or anything. It's just that, 'til now he alwaysknew that there would be nothing between Rose and the Doctor. Either because the Time Lord would not act upon his feelings, or because she was trapped in an alternative universe, or because he left her in that same universe with a human version of himself. So the Doctor, the real Doctor, would never have her (and he didn't have to see the Other Doctor). Now, however, Rose is back, and they're obviously going through with this. Mickey's got nothing to hide behind him anymore, nothing to delude himself. That's why he reacts so defensively, 'cause I think that facing this wouldn't be easy.**


	20. More Family Matters Part I

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Warning:** I've probably got gallifreyan ancestry wrong...but that's intentional!

**Chapter 20: More Family Matters (Part I)**

They went to the zoo, the next day. Each taking a map, so they could find their way if they got separated, or someone wanted to investigate something on his or her own, the Doctor explained to them how it was divided into sections named after the planets, the animals originated from. Furthermore, he told them that they could probably spend days in there as the Barcelonian Zoo was huge, 'as big as a small country, in fact' he put it, so he suggested going to sections other than 'Earth', since they could see that every day without travelling half a galaxy and a good thousand years.

"Alright then, allons-y!" he shouted, grabbing Rose's hand and practically dragging her off with him so fast, the others had trouble following.

At first, the little group had been a bit reluctant to go to a zoo, as they considered it a place you took small kids infatuated with 'furly' animals, but after seeing 'mermaids', unicorns and phoenixes they revised their earlier judgement, and their enthusiasm grew tenfold. Rose was especially fascinated by the phoenixes as the Doctor had mentioned them before. He'd been right, they were beautiful. Even his description, while correct, could no measure up to their actual appearance. And their singing…

"They're wonderful, Doctor," she whispered, moved by the display infront of her, as she looked up at him. His face was pale and serious, which worried her. "Doctor?"

"Let's gather the others. We need to get everyone out of here, and fast!"

Rose sighed.

_'The curse of the black tie,'_ she thought. _'Or maybe it's just the Doctor.'_

Before she could even open her mouth to ask him what was wrong, the Doctor had already turned around to face the others. The cold seriousness on his face made their friends gulp, as they knew immediately that something was going to happen- something terribly. Of course, travelling with the Doctor, they'd expected nothing less than a bit of a crisis, but they'd hoped beyond hope that they would actually get some vacation and relaxation before that.

"Sarah-Jane, take everyone, and go to the nearest administrative building. Lock yourselves inside, tell everyone over the loudspeakers to do the same, and make sure that the zoo is put under quarantine," the Doctor instructed his former companion.

While the red-head just nodded, and went to do as she was told, Mickey was less than impressed.

"But we'll be locked inside!" he protested.

"Yes, but if this thing gets out, the whole planet will be in danger, and we can't have that, now can we?" the Last of the Time Lords replied to him, but looked at Jack.

"You go with them. Get yourselves guns, and the strongest sedative you can get your hands on, then come find me."

"Alright," Jack nodded. "But I'll split my team. Leave some there for protection."

"Good, do that," the pinstriped alien barely registered his words as he surveyed the area, before locking gazes with his beloved.

"No," she said, simply.

"But I didn't say anything yet."

"You don't have to," she snorted. "You intend to sent me away-"

"I want to keep you safe!"

"Not gonna happen. I told you, I'd stay with you forever-"

"What's that got to do with anything?!"

She glowered at him.

"It's got everything to do with it. I promised to stay with you forever, the good times and the hard ones- with the hard ones being more likely around you," she smiled up at him, and she could see his lips quirking slightly upwards at the corners. Then, however, he sent Jack a silent, but desperate plea for help, and the immortal Torchwood leader stepped up to grasp her arm. She turned to him, expression grim.

"At least come with us, and arm yourself, so you'll not be so vulnerable," the false captain suggested.

Rose bit her lip.

" 'kay," she replied after a moment's thought, and let herself be dragged off by her longtime friend. A few feet later, Jack stopped suddenly, and turned around.

"Exactly, what are we fighting, Doc?"

"Don't call me 'Doc', Captain Flirt."

"Don't call me Cap-"

"Guys!" Gwen growled. "There's a time and a place."

At least, they had the decency to be embarrassed. (Jack embarrassed, that's a new one)

"Really, though, Doctor," Martha chimed in. "What's the threat?"

Before the Doctor's next words could form in his throat, and leave it, the little space their group had been occupying turned eerily silent. Silent enough to hear the small scratching sounds unseen claws made on the sandy ground, and to hear the dark huffs of breaths emmited from somewhere around the corner. When they didn't dare breath, they heard the long, low growl as the creature stepped out of the shadows. None of them could really take a look at it, because the Doctor's next order was barked out in a voice so compelling, they followed it instantly.

"RUN!"

And while everyone ran after where Sarah-Jane and her group had disappeared to, the Doctor made a dash in the opposite direction, passing very close alongside the beast. This almost made Rose's heart stop. Especially since the last thing she saw, before some alien plant hindered her view, was apparently skinless muscle following her Time Lord with a mighty roar coming from it's throat. She immediately began to fight Jack, struggling to get free of his hold on her, but his grip was unrelenting.

"We have to go back!" she cried. "It'll kill him, we have to go back!"

"And do what?!" the man replied, whirling around and gripping her by the shoulders.

"Something, anything! I don't know-"

"Exactly. Rose, we won't leave him, I promise, but right now, we need to do what he told us to do. We need to get to that building, and get armed. Only then, we'll be able to help him. He's risking his life to give us time, to protect us, so we can save Barcelona, and him. Come on now, don't let it be in vane," Jack pleaded with her.

Another sob, and she followed. Reluctant, she was, but she understood what he was saying. Understood that her Doctor's only chance was for them to get to him in time, armed and ready. And for that to be the case, they needed to leave him for the time being. He understood it. It was his plan, after all, but that didn't mean it didn't feel like betrayel to her. And, obviously, she couldn't help but worry about the man. She'd just found him, so to speak, she couldn't lose him again.

"Ssh, it's alright," Martha told her.

"Yeah, we'll find him, and save that idiot Time Lord," Gwen added reassuringly.

"Of course we will!" an unknown voice informed them. The group looked up, and found a set of guns flying towards them, and right into their arms.

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It was following.

Of course, it was following. That had been the plan, after all, and it was working out quite brilliantly, if he may think so himself. Now, his friends had enough time to find the next building, and get themselves armed to the teeth. Not that he was a fan of the general idea, but in this case, he didn't really see many other options. That didn't mean that he wouldn't try any of the others. So far, however, trying to lure it back into it's cage had proven unsuccessful. Apparently, the beast was quite intelligent.

_'Well, obviously…'_

The open streets of the zoo were empty. He had heard Sarah-Jane's warning come over the loudspeakers only a minute before, and it seemed that everyone was taking it seriously, thank Rassilon. He couldn't help, but wonder, though, where the zookeepers had gone to. If his friends had informed them that they had a potentially dangerous beast on he loose, they should be out here, trying to catch it.

_'Maybe they've searched cover, instead, leaving it to us… the cowards!' _the Doctor thought darkly.

He just hoped that everyone was fine, and that they had been able to make the building secure. And that Jack had been able to persuade Rose to be one of the ones who would stay with the others for protection, whether he told her it to be for hers or theirs, the Doctor didn't care. As long as Rose was safe, that was all that mattered. He quickly took another turn, towards the administrative building he'd send the others to, this time. He guessed that he'd given them enough time to prepare themselves.

_'Time to make a run for it… to meet the cavalry…'_

"Doctor, we're ready," he heard Ianto's voice over the com he'd nicked from Mickey. "Jack and the others are awaiting you by the dragon cages, sir."

"Don't call me 'sir'," the Doctor muttered, as he dragged his zoo map out of the infinite depths of his coat pocket. "Ianto, who's with you?"

His voice didn't waver, he decided.

"Sarah-Jane, Mickey, and Martha, si- Doctor, sorry!" came the apologetic reply.

The Doctor sighed audibly.

"Figures… It's alright, Ianto. I knew better than to hope."

Suddenly, a shot fell, and the beast whimpered. The Time Lord realized that, while he'd been concentrating on his conversation with Torchwood's coffee boy- Jack's idea, not his- he'd reached the dragon cages without noticing. Slowing his movements, he turned to take a look at whom he'd have to thank for saving his life, and stopped dead in his tracks. That was impossible. Queen Victoria had gotten it right all that time ago: The Dead stay silent. They definitely do not come to your rescue when being chased by some dangerous predator.

And yet…

There she stood, all green and yellow. Bleach blonde hair floating softly on the breeze, coral rimmed chocolate eyes looking at him with pure mirth, and a broad smile threatening to split her pale face in two. She still wore her olive shirt and dark pants, and of course those black boots tipical for the soldier she was born as. Well, not exactly born, but more like created as- artificially created… from him.

"Jenny?" the Doctor faltered.

"Hi, dad!" she grinned.

A moment later, she was in his arms. His friends stared on, utterly confused, even Martha( who heard every word over the com), who'd been there when Jenny came into existance. They'd all heard the story from said medical doctor many times, but it had always ended with the girl's premature death. Never had any of them guessed that the child of the machine could still be out there somewhere. This was truly a happy day.

Jack took a look at Rose, who seemed troubled.

'What does she know about Jenny?' he wondered.

Rose watched the intimate exchange with trepidation. Everytime, John had told her about Jenny, it had sounded as if she was just a friend. Someone he'd grown close to in a short amount of time, like he'd done on so many occasions before. Rose had always known that there was something that he was not telling her, but she'd never pushed him. Now, she knew why he hadn't wanted to talk about it, seeing as it was a distinct sign that he had replaced her after she was gone (considering that he did love her back then, too, or so he said), and it brought tears to her eyes.

Jack noticed this development, and coughed loudly towards the still entangled family. When the Doctor gazed at him curiously, he nudged his head towards the brunette, and the Time Lord realized immediately that something was wrong. Rose had said that John had told her about his adventures during the time she was on the parallel Earth, and he'd thought that included Jenny's origins, but apparently he was wrong about that. He couldn't very well blame his twin for that, he'd have a hard time explaining this, too. If she'll let him. Loosening his grip on his sort-of daughter, which earned him a confused look from the girl, he went over to his beloved, and reached out to cup her cheek. Before his fingers could so much as brush her delicate skin, though, a deep growl resounded on the tiny plaza, followed by a tumble and a cry of pain, which distinly came from Jack. One look confirmed that he'd been attacked by another one of those beasts.

"Of course, they mate for life… so they always hunt in pairs," the Doctor cried out in frustration.

"Nevermind that, what do we do?" Gwen asked him.

"We shoot it," the Time Lord answered in his 'well, duh' tone.

"But we could hit Jack," the black-haired constable replied.

"You're right, it could kill him," the alien said, giving her a pointed look. "Oh, wait, he's immortal. He'll live. Although, I don't know if he would, if that creature eats him, so seriously, just shoot."

Reluctant, Gwen had to agree that the Doctor had a point- as always- and fired, twice, because the first time, she actually did hit Jack.

"What are those things?" Jenny then asked, exasperated.

"Ehrm… Rose, you remember how I told you that you descend from apes, while I descend from something else?" the Doctor asked her, fidgeting.

They gaped at him.

**End of chapter 20!**

**A/N: 'grins' I hope you enjoyed this. Only two more chapters to go now. 'sigh' Please leave a review!**


	21. More Family Matters Part II

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own either DW or SG, which I only put in here in case I ever got the guts to write down that crossover that got stuck in my head.( so that I won't have to think up a timeline-on the DW part-for it)

**Chapter 21: More Family Matters (Part II)**

"Of course, they mate for life… so they always hunt in pairs," the Doctor cried out in frustration.

"Nevermind that, what do we do?" Gwen asked him.

"We shoot it," the Time Lord answered in his 'well, duh' tone.

"But we could hit Jack," the black-haired constable replied.

"You're right, it could kill him," the alien said, giving her a pointed look. "Oh, wait, he's immortal. He'll live. Although, I don't know if he would, if that creature eats him, so seriously, just shoot."

Reluctant, Gwen had to agree that the Doctor had a point- as always- and fired, twice, because the first time, she actually did hit Jack.

"What are those things?" Jenny then asked, exasperated.

"Ehrm… Rose, you remember how I told you that you descend from apes, while I descend from something else?" the Doctor asked her, fidgeting.

They gaped at him.

The Doctor shifted uncomfortably under their staring. He could even hear stunned silence from the other end of the com, although he was rather sure that he heard Mickey-the-idiot snicker uncontrollably for a moment. The others had most likely given him death glares to shut him up. Still, as the silence stretched, and the Time Lord grew ever more uneasy around his friends.

"Are you telling me… oh, that's rich!" Rose growled. "Calls us stupid apes, the hypocrite! And then it turns out he descends from skinless alien lions or something!"

"Well," the Doctor amended. "They're not exactly my… I mean, they evolved a bit, too… They're more like prehistorical cousins…"

"That explains your oral fixation!" Rose shouted, maybe a tad bit hysterical. "If they take a nip at everything that moves, no wonder you've got to lick everything that passes your way, and is remotedly interesting. I'm surprised you haven't licked any of us yet."

"Well, technically… does french kissing qualify?" the Doctor wondered aloud.

Rose blushed furiously, but other than that an irate grunt was the only answer he got.

"Besides," the Last of the Time Lords continued, pouting. "It's quite an achievement to evolve into humanoid form from such a beast. And not just any humanoid form, either, but the oldest, most mighty race in the universe. That's an achievement to be proud of. You lot have barely lost all that dark hair that once covered your whole body, hiding your silky skin."

He reached out to caress Rose's cheek with his knuckles for emphasis, but the young woman flinched away. He frowned at her, before following her gaze to where Jenny was helping Captain Flirt back to his feet at the moment. The pinstriped alien gulped, when he looked back to his beloved's face, only to see tears welling up in her eyes. Tears of betrayel, and heartbreak. He went to reassure her, but Rose backed away from him, shaking her head as she looked him in the eye, and then ran.

As fast as she could, away from him!

"You didn't tell her, about Jenny, I mean?" Jack asked, coming up at his side.

"She said that the other- that John had told her what I'd done while she was trapped on that parallel Earth. I just assumed he had spoken about this, too," the Doctor admitted sulkily.

"Would you have told her in his place? Told her everything?"

"…probably not," the alien sighed.

"There you have it, then," Jack told him, patting him on the shoulder. "You better go talk to her."

"But-" the Doctor protested, turning to look at Jenny.

The blonde smiled.

"This woman… she is important to you, yes?" his daughter asked.

He just nodded, not trusting his voice anymore.

"Then what are you waiting for? Go after her."

The Time Lord in question looked up, surprised.

"I've waited so many years to talk to you again. I can wait a little bit longer," Jenny assured him.

He nodded again, and ran after his love.

Torchwood Three- or the part that was present- and Jenny watched him disappear in the distance, all of them sighing at how complicated this relationship was. Although, at least, it never got boring. Best soap-opera ever, in Jack's opinion. Still, it was getting a little annoying that the two of them could never find their common ground, and stay on it, dammit! They were still standing there, wistfully gazing at where the two starcrossed lovers had disappeared from view, when Sarah-Jane arrived with the rest of Torchwood and their little group, ready to help moving the sleeping bodies back into their cages.

"Good thing you came," Jack muttered as he started to lift one of the bodies. "These beasts weigh a ton. And I'll need my strength for that stupid conference."

"What conference exactly, Jack?" Gwen immediately asked, hoping she'd get an answer this time. A real one. "We couldn't exactly make out anything useful between your curses, when we had just removed those wasps from the street."

Jack sighed.

"UNIT plans on telling the americans about their programm- not ours, their's, but they want two of us present."

"But UNIT stands for United Nations Intelligence Taskforce- the americans are part of it. They've got their own branches," Mickey wondered.

"Not those americans, the other americans."

"What other americans?" came the instant reply.

Jack just looked at them like they were mad.

"But you… I mean, sure, to me they're history, but seriously...don't you guys read the reports we get in?" the Captain asked incredulously.

Martha tapped her foot.

"Jack," she said, exasperated. "We get thousands of reports send over by UNIT or from Glasgow every day. If we were to read every last one of them, we'd never get any work done, and some of us actually need to sleep, so… What americans?!"

"The SGC, Stargate Command."

"I've read about them. Even seen a memorial here on Barcelona," Jenny mused aloud.

A moment of silence.

"Ah…" Mickey was the first to answer. "I deleted those reports-"

"YOU WHAT?"

"Well, I thought they were a joke, I mean, it's not very secret, is it? There's even a TV show about it. It's fiction," the dark-skinned man defended himself.

"Good thing, I save all reports on paper, then…" Ianto muttered.

"Yeah, good thing," Jack agreed, growling. "And they're not fiction. They're real. Very real. And very annoying. Have you any idea how many times I had to clean up their messes when I was still a member of the Time Agency? They cause paradoxes wherever they go, or they blow up solar systems, or tear apart the fabric of reality… And the paper work alone, they still give me nowadays!…Ugh!"

"So, basically, you don't like them?" Sarah-Jane clipped, and everybody fell into fits of laughter.

3333333333333333333333333

She hadn't run back to the hotel, even though she still had the spare keycard for his room. Instead, she'd run home, back into the TARDIS to press herself against one of the ship's walls, as if she was looking for a hug. The sentient ship tried her best to be of service, and gave the brunette the psychic impression of warm hands that caressed soothing pattern on her back as she cried. The lights dimmed, and Rose sank down on the floor, only to lie there like a sobbing bundle.

That was how the Doctor found her.

"Go away," she told him weakly.

He did the exact opposite, he moved towards her and gathered her in his arms. Rocking her gently, his hands went to replace the TARDISes, but the ships consciousness remained linked with her own still. Rose pushed meekly at his chest, unsure of whether she wanted him to actually leave, or just needed to look at his face as he began to speak.

"It's okay, love. It's okay. Everything is fine…"

"No, it's not… Why didn't he tell me?" she cried into his chest.

The Doctor stilled.

"You're angry at him? At John?"

"For not telling me, yes. And I'm hurt that… th-that you r-replaced me when I was gone, but I know I couldn't expect you to stay on your own. I didn't want you to be lonely… But he should've told me!"

"I didn't replace you!" he argued vehemently.

"Then how come you have a daughter, and he didn't tell me! And she's about my age, too. How long exactly have I been gone?" she asked him, anger rising at his denial.

"She isn't my daughter… well, yes she is, but only technically."

"What is that supposed to mean? Either you are her father, or you aren't?"

"Well, a DNA test would definitely designate me as her father, but," he continued before she could interrupt him. "…but that's because she came from me, through progenation."

"What's progenation?" she asked, sounding as if she was trying to hold on to her anger, and failing. She pushed against his chest once more, and this time he loosened his embrace just enough so she could read the sincerity in his eyes.

"Progenation. Reproduction from a single organism. One parent is biological mother and father. You take a sample of diploid cells, split them into haploids, rearrange them differently, and grow- very, very fast. The machine aged her body to it's prime, plus she's spend some years travelling, so that's why she looks like she's your age. She isn't. She was genetically engineered- like my other children. Well, looming is a bit more complicated, mind you."

"Looming?"

"That's how we made children on Gallifrey. No physical intimacy, it was frowned upon. We made children, literally manufactured them. And so was Jenny."

"So, she's… she's…a Time Lady, or whatever you call it?" Rose asked, trying to wrap her mind about all this information.

"No," he replied, sadly, kissing the top of her head. "She has two hearts, but…she's an echo, nothing more. I thought, she'd died, but… she didn't regenerate… but maybe the terraforming device gave her cells the decisive push, just a bit later… I…"

Now it was Rose's turn to hug him as he wavered. She quietly apologized for overreacting like she did, but he just shrugged it off, telling her it was an understandable reaction. They then proceeded to cuddle up to each other, uncaring of the hard metal grating they were sitting on. A small grateful kiss turned into something much more passionate, that had them part only for air.

"Think, the rest of the vacation will go smoothly?" Rose asked, mirth in her voice.

"Oh, you never know." He smiled, his eyes twinkling.

Rose's head fell forward once more to engage into another furiously passionate kiss, but this time, her hands came up to loosen his tie. Nimble fingers then proceeded to open the upper buttons of his shirt. Slowly sliding down, careful not to touch him, just tease him with the warmth of her finger tips she went about laying his chest bare infront of her eyes, loosening his jacket when it stood in her way. Before she could finish her job, two strong hands came up, and stopped her as his mouth broke away from hers.

"Please, Rose," he pleaded. "I want our first time to be special, not some stupid make up sex."

Alright, yes, Time Lords did blush…furiously…at their own choice of words…

"Doctor, we've already made up with that first kiss."

"We have?"

"Yes, I'm no longer angry at you, or John."

"Oh."

"So, would you agree that we've made up."

"Uhm…yes?"

She smiled at how cute he looked when he was unsure of himself. She disentangled her hands from his, and lifted his tie up and over his head, throwing it into the far corner of the console room. Then she finished unbuttoning the upper layers of his clothing, allowing a hand to slip underneath the garments to caress the smooth firmness of his chest. The Time Lord gasped adorably when a finger grazed his nipple.

"Then, Doctor, make love to me."

The Doctor growled. He didn't need to be asked twice, as he immediately picked her up, and carried her to his bedroom. Once there, he put her down onto her feet, but refused to give her any time to take in the sinfully red sheets on his bed, or the neatly cataloged assortment of physic books in the shelf beside his nightstand. Instead, he distracted her by letting his cool fingers slip between the fabric of her shirt and her skin, not touching until he reached her bra, where he lazily outlined the soft garment. Rose's hands gripped his shoulders for support as she moaned at that small contact. She couldn't bring herself to care about the smugness that settled in his features at that reaction, especially when he disvested her of her shirt and bra, and shrugged of his own shirt and jacket. Both half-naked now, the Time Lord immediately set to work his mouth down the column of her neck in a series of sensual and torturingly slow kisses, and his hands began to massage her chest carefully.

Rose couldn't help but marvel at how similar this alien and her late husband were. All the things she had loved about the Time Lord she'd travelled with for so long, had still been there in John. And now she was discovering that all those things she'd thought to be the quirks of John's human side were part of his alien self as well. He was exploring her just as thoroughly, slowly driving her insane with his teasing strokes and flirtatious gaze.

This Doctor, too, seemed intend on worshipping her body…

**End of chapter 21!**

**A/N: One more chapter to go... Yay! Unfortunately, since I'm going into Christmas Break now, it won't be up until January, Third or Fourth (not sure yet). I'm being mean, I know, but I can't help it. I haven't seen my family in ages, and it's Christmas. I'm sure you understand. Thank you.**

**And don't forget: Reviews are love! (and a wonderful Christmas gift) :)**

**Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!**


	22. Home

_**How Long Is Forever?**_

**Spoilers:** This is a post Journey's End Reunion fic, so there are spoilers up until there.

**Chapter 22: Home**

A week later, the Children Of Time, with their newest member being Jenny, was back at the Torchwood hub. Well, it had been a week for them, but for Donna's granfather Wilfred it had just been a few minutes since he'd sent them off. This, of course, ended in more teasing about his 'constantly improving- not that they could get any worse- dirving skills' as Jack so eloquently put it. Laughing loudly at the sour face of the Last of the Time Lords, he stepped outside the Magic Blue Box, stroking her side as she laughed along with him, and organized everyone's arrival at the hub. Ianto was already on the phone, calling several taxis for their friends, and making sure they'd make it to the airport in time to catch their flight.

The Doctor watched silently from his position leaning against the TARDIS as Rose and Jenny helped the Jones family and Sarah-Jane with consorts to regroup, and check if they had everything. Not that they couldn't bring anything their friends might have forgotten on the TARDIS back to them. A small smile made itself known on the pinstriped alien's face, having witnessed the two blondes growing closer over the past week (which had fortunately been uneventful after the zoo incident- well, as uneventful as a different planet than your own could be). Rose was still a bit shy around his 'daughter', and Jenny wasn't quite sure what to see her as, this woman that was so important to her father, but they had already formed an admittedly still thin and fragile bond of friendship. And an understanding seemed to pass between them too.

"They're going to be alright," the Time Lord suddenly heard a familiar voice tell him in a bitter tone. "It might have confused her, hurt her even, but, seeing as it has happened before, we know that she's so completely in love with you that she'd forgive you anything."

"Mickedy-Mick-Mickey, my man," the Doctor cheered, trying to lighten the mood between them, which had been rather tense all throughout their off-world vacation.

"I'm not your man," the dark-skinned Torchwood Team member replied. "But Rose is your woman. She's always been yours…"

The Doctor didn't reply for a moment, choosing instead to just watch as his Lifemate, radiant with her happiness, danced around the hub. Sadness still took her in unexpected situations, when she thought about her husband, her family, her children. He remembered how she'd cried that first time they'd made love. He had told her that she didn't need to do it, that he could wait, but she'd assured him that it was okay- "No more dancing around it," she'd said- and they'd consumated their relationship. She'd been both, happy and sad, she'd told him, but mostly happy. And now, he could see it, clear of any bad memories, her happiness, making her more beautiful than ever.

Making her look like an elven-maid out of those fairybooks the humans loved so much.

And she was his. Had, by Mickey's admission, always been his, even when he had refused to acknowledge it. The Doctor knew that the other man spoke the truth. From the moment he'd taken her hand, and told her to run, there had been something that captured them both, some sort of bond, making him find her again. He ran into her so many times in those few days that it was obvious that the universe was trying to tell him something, but he'd refused to listen, had faked to be deaf. Because she, a mere human, didn't fit into his world, not really, and because he didn't want her tainted by his sins. Besides, he'd argued, she had a boyfriend, was happy in her relationship, so what was the point.

"You loved her first," the Time Lord finally said.

Mickey laughed humorlessly.

"Yeah, and she left me for Jimmy Stone," he snorted. "And now she's left me for an alien."

"Do you love her? Because if you do, then why is it so hard for you to watch her happy?" the Doctor retorted, anger slowly rising. "I love her. I do, and if she wanted to leave, really wanted to, then I'd let her go."

"Like when you left her on Bad Wolf Bay?" Mickey mocked.

"I did what I thought was best for her, what she'd want. A normal life, someone who'll age with her-"

"Only, she wouldn't have aged with him, right?…Don't look at me like that, I'm not the idiot you want to believe I am."

The Doctor was about to reply, when he was called over by a glaring Francine Jones. Shivering at the intensity of her gaze, he quickly followed suit, albeit quite reluctant in his last few steps toward her. Angry mothers were dangerous, after all. What if he got slapped again? What if he got slapped multiple times? His worries were soon erased as he found himself enveloped in her arms. He wasn't the type to hug mothers- too domestic, besides, the last time Jackie had forced him, and then kissed him, ugh!- but he wasn't going to offend the mother of one of his best friends, and so he loosely returned the embrace.

"Now, Doctor," Tish assaulted him as soon as her mother had let go of him, and thanked him for the nice holiday. Martha's younger sister gave him a short hug as well, before continuing. "These are all the dates, to which you've got to come back to drop off Rose."

"Why's that, then?"

"For my wedding, you plum," Martha snorted at him. "I'll need every hand I can get to help me organize it. And, of course, to choose a dress."

'There's a date?', the Doctor wondered, but chose to just nod outwardly. He then said his goodbyes to the Jones family, Sarah-Jane, Luke and Maria, smiling and laughing with them for a few more minutes, until the taxis arrived. Afterwards he turned to watch Jack give out orders to his team, so they would finally return to their positions- not without hugging both him and Rose, of course (although, in Jack's case, a kiss on the lips was due).

His eyes widened, however, when Jenny, too, came to say goodbye.

"But… I just found you again," the Doctor pouted.

"And now you know where to find me," Jenny said, laughingly. "Jack offered me a job here at Torchwood."

This earned Captain Flirt an 'Oncoming Storm' glare, to which the man grinned.

"You accepted?" Rose asked, surprised. She'd just started to get to know Jenny.

"Yeah, we think…you two need a bit of time alone together…"

"Now more than ever!" Gwen chimed in.

"Plus, I don't want you here during that conference," Jack added. "And if you're left alone with Rose, you'll be heavenly distracted, I'm sure."

The young couple blushed.

Torchwood Three laughed.

"Besides, Jenny can help us keep Donna out of alien trouble," Martha told him. "She seems to have a knack to get into it, still."

The Doctor turned to his daughter, asking her with his gaze if she was sure. The young woman smiled reassuringly, and encircled his waist. Her face pressed against his suit-covered chest in order to listen to his double heartbeat. When she lifted her eyes to his, her look told him so much. Her desire to see him again soon, her wish for him to find love and happiness, her hope to go on many adventures with him in the future- when he and Rose had sorted everything out.

"See you at the wedding, dad," she said, cheekily, and the Doctor was unsure if she really meant Martha's.

333333333333333333333333333

(5 months later)

It was late at night in the TARDIS' artifitial cycle. Almost hidden under the covers, Rose slept peacefully. While she was wandering around the land of dreams, she hadn't noticed how the Doctor had gently lifted her head off his chest. Kissing her brow, he layed it down gently onto the pillow they shared. Rough fingerpads traced the silky skin of her arm and shoulder, and she sighed softly at the contact. Her sleepy smile made the Time Lord chuckle. He found it to be extremely difficult to get up to leave her on her to her sleep, but his wonderful ship had been buggering him the whole night about having something to tell him.

'Alright, alright, I'm coming,' he thought as he received another mental nudge from the old girl.

Sighing, he reluctantly got out of bed, picking up his clothes and dressing as he followed the twinkling lights of the TARDIS, directing him to the med bay. Frowning, he wondered if anything was wrong with Rose. He'd persuaded her to get her blood tested every month, just in case the Time Vortex was not finished with her yet. She'd been exasperated by his constant pleas when she'd finally said 'yes'.

The Doctor said down infront of the monitor, pulling out his specs and putting them on to read the quickly changing pattern of complicated circles that were galliferyan letters. His frown grew when he could fins nothing wrong with the test results at all. He couldn't understand what the TARDIS had dragged him out of bed for in the middle of the night. Away from Rose.

His glare at the ceiling was met with a growl in his mind, as she urged him to keep looking at the monitor.

He turned his gaze back to the writings, even though he didn't really expect anything good to come of it. A moment later, the Doctor could've sworn that his hearts had skipped a beat- several, in fact. What he was reading just then, couldn't be right. It just couldn't. It was impossible! Then again, so was travelling between the universes without causing mass distruction, and he'd been proven wrong there, twice. This however, was so much more impossible that it bordered unbelieveable, even though he saw proof right infront of him.

The Doctor grinned.

He couldn't contain it. He was overjoyed, euphoria seeping through every fibre of his being at what the TARDIS was telling him. It was wonderful, it was a miracle. His miracle, their miracle. And he would make sure everything would go smoothly, this time. He'd lost too many people already, he wasn't losing any more of them. Jumping up, he danced around the corridors, skipping a step or two once in a while, like his hearts missed some beats. He was laughing so freely, like he hadn't laughed in centuries.

Now, how to tell his beloved Rose that she was pregnant…

**The End**

**A/N: So, this is the end of How Long Is Forever. Maybe I'll write a sequel sometime in the future. We'll see... **

**For the time being I'll write an AU fic for Human Nature/Family of Blood with Rose. I know it's been done before, but 'The Nature Of A Rose' is going to be different. I promise. So, if you're intrested, the first chapter should be up in a few days, a week at most.**

**One more thing: I've written another JE alternative ending entitled _'Does Your Mother Know?'_, and I can promise that it's different from any other JE 'fix it' story- at least I haven't seen anything like it, yet.**


End file.
